Kiyoshi this way comes
by Otakuyoukai
Summary: Sess/OC A modern day American girl transports herself to what she hopes is her true home.She is captured by bandits, stolen by Sesshomaru and has no idea where she is. Then demons start showing up EVERYWHERE. Rewriting, let me know how I'm doing.
1. Preface

_First off, anyone who was reading this story in the past will notice that the 25 chapters that were here have been deleted. I did this because I am revamping the entire thing. This is a story I started when I was 16 and now I'm twenty so I would say it really needed it. I will try to post chapters as often as I can, for now I'm only going to post the first two, just to give a taste of what I've changed. I will try to post two chapters a day if I can. We will see. Also the last time around there really wasn't much of a plot, it was a lot like the series, just filler. I am trying to change that this time around. Anyhow, read and review and let me know what you think ok guys?_

_**Prologue**_

"Where in the bloody hell did I put that bag…" A young woman's voice emanated from a closet into the silent bedroom, inhabited only by a fuzzy little creature hiding in a cloth pouch on the bed. The eyes of the tiny fur ball watched curiously as a girl of about 17 emerged from the closet with a large duffel bag, spitting the dust out of her mouth as she patted off more of the stuff from her shoulder. "I found it Victor." She smiled at the large brown eyes of the furry animal named Victor as she turned to stare down the closet once more. Victor watched in silence as the girl sorted through the various articles of clothing, more often than not rolling up the item of inspection and placing it neatly inside the pack. When just about everything from the closet was inside the pack the girl moved on to a dresser in the corner. Here she opened a drawer and began to remove and place into the pack various other items, mostly of the undergarment type, as well as her new swimsuit.

She crossed the room back to the closet and pulled out a smaller black case. She took this back to the dresser and began to fill it with hygienic items, such as her toothbrush and toothpaste, small bits of makeup, two king-size bottles of shampoo and conditioner, as well as a bar of organic soap. She stopped at her hairbrush and ran it through her shoulder-length wavy hair. It shined blood-red in the poor light of the small lamp in the corner. She added this to the items in the case and zipped it shut.

She left the room for a few minutes and returned with a load of various food stuffs. She packed these boxes and bags into yet another bag and looked around the room. "Only a few more things Victor and we'll be ready to go." She smiled again at the tiny creature hiding itself in the cloth pouch. Another set of eyes appeared then, slightly larger than the first. "Oh, Victoria, you're awake finally." She lightly patted the pouch and continued packing. Victor and Victoria watched in curious silence as the girl added a few random items from the room to her backpack. She placed an iPod and a few notebooks of plain drawing paper into it as well as pencils pens and an assortment of small knives. The final item was a rather large leather-bound book that looked positively ancient; she gave this a hug as she placed it gingerly into the bag.

She lowered the bags quietly out of her bedroom window to the ground just below. As this was happening Victor and Victoria crept into the light just outside of their safe little pouch. "You two need to get back in there." The girl scooped up the pair of Sugar gliders and placed them back into their pouch as she strapped it to her belt.

She then lowered herself to the ground below the window and awkwardly packed all of her bags toward a barn in the darkness. Even with the large bundle of items her form seemed lithe in the darkness and 

she moved with an inhuman grace. She had always moved like that, a few people had said she should have been a dancer.

A few minutes later her shadow emerged from the barn towing a four-legged animal with long ears. They passed under the light on the outside of the barn and the donkey she was towing stopped momentarily. "Come on Jack, we've got to move quickly, I don't want to be caught." She rubbed the animal's neck lovingly and he moved forward with no more complaints. All of her packs were now strapped to a harness the animal wore as they slipped into the darkness of the nearby forest.

The group of three animals and one human moved quietly through the woods, the girl's semi-light mood of earlier having evaporated into an anxious determination like no other. There was no turning around now. This was the point of no return.

She had decided last week that it was time to leave. She couldn't take living there anymore. Her step father had made it quite clear in their argument that there wasn't anywhere else she could go. He would only hunt her down, and even if he didn't, she couldn't make the money to survive in this world. She had never worked before and she had no marketable skills. She made decent grades in high school but there was no way of being able to afford college and she had no idea of what she would major in anyway. Besides all of that, she was different. She wasn't a normal person; that she knew. There were things she could do that no one else could. Her real father was the same way. He told her when she was little that they were sort of like witches. She wasn't sure if that was true or if he just couldn't come up with a better explanation for a 5 year old to try to understand. The leather book was her "Book of Shadows" as he had called it. He said it was just a cool name and he liked it. He never let her mother know about it, it was hers to keep and she had done a good job since her father's death of not letting her mother know of its existence. It wasn't that her mother was a bad person, at least not while her father was alive. But after his death she went into this terrible fit of depression and ended up hooked on a lot of bad things, bad things that she could get for free when she married her supplier and made him the girl's step father.

"Kira, everything's gonna be fine when I marry Doug, you'll see. We'll be happy forever and ever." The girl mocked her mother's words as she walked through the woods. "She was too high to even know what she was saying; I'm surprised she even got my name right. Come on Jack, no stopping, we gotta keep going." Kira kept her pace going and went over in her head the reasons she was leaving, fortifying her resolve in this.

Kira was only 7 when her mother chosen to marry Doug, and the shock of moving from their nice little house they had shared with her loving father to Doug's nasty little trailer was horrible. It wouldn't have been so bad if Doug didn't match the trailer completely. He was a sweaty, greasy old pervert that was frequently drunk, high, or both with his buddies in the living room and yard. A couple of his friends really took a liking to Kira, and even at the age of 7 she knew that was a horrible thing. They often tried to get her to join them, to take pictures with or for them and to sit in their laps or hug them. She was lucky in that they were usually too stoned to catch her. She always ran straight to the woods and would hide in a 

tree for hours until she could no longer hear them partying at the house. There were occasions when she would stay the entire night in one of those trees.

"Disgusting filth," Kira sneered as she stepped over a fallen tree and coaxed the donkey to follow suit.

It didn't take long for her once sweet mother to become just as filthy and horrible as Doug was. She didn't hate her mother; she pitied her more than anything. She tried to help her mother, and once she even got her to go to a rehab center. But when Doug found out they both received a horrible beating. Kira had finally decided there was no saving her mother; she was to the point now where she no longer wanted to be saved. But she wasn't going to allow herself to stay there; she would save herself even if she couldn't save her mother as well. She had been looking around in her father's book to see if there was anything there that could possibly help her, and she had found just the thing. She was only hoping for something to maybe make leaving easier or make it difficult if not impossible for Doug to find her when she left, but she found something that seemed better. In one section of the book there was a list of symbols which had special abilities. There was a rune by the name of Uris. It looked like an inverted angular U with one side longer than the other. This rune supposedly allowed one to travel. There was an accompanying set of instructions on how to find where one belonged.

She had decided upon finding this that she was going, and there was no stopping her.

Kira finally stopped in a bare patch of the woods that she had found the night before. She had already set up most of her supplies here; 5 white candles and some crystals she had bought in an occult bookstore in town. She tied the donkey to a stake in the center of her workspace, pulled the book from her bag and set about following the complicated directions.

About half an hour later she stood up and admired her work. She had drawn a rather large pentacle on the ground around the donkey, each point having its respective symbol inscribed in the dirt. She had all the various herbs, crystals and objects precisely where the diagram had said to put them. She made sure everything was ready and used her fingertip to dig the rune Uris into the earth in the center of the circle, being sure that it faced in the proper direction as specified by the book. She ran her finger through the shape and charged it by speaking its name out loud. She did this 3 times as the book told her to do. Kira picked up the book and patted the dozing donkey to her left. She read:

"By the power of the god and of the goddess and of the rune Uris, I pray thee take me away, I pray thee take me to my home, my one true home, to the world and land in which I belong."

She repeated this thrice, each time the world becoming just a bit fuzzier, as though she was staring at it through a sheet of water. She closed her eyes and held tightly to the book and the mane of the donkey beside her as a bright flash of light enveloped her vision of the dark forest. The last thought to go through her mind as she slipped into darkness was, "Gods, I hope this works…"


	2. Chapter 1 A New World

_**Chapter 1 A new world**_

Kira awoke to the braying of a donkey, as well as a headache she claimed came directly from hell. She sat up and groaned as she pressed her palm to her forehead. "Shut up Jack I'm up I'm up." She sat up and groaned again as she felt just how stiff her entire body was. She stretched uncomfortably and finally opened her eyes to look around, "Oh god!" She closed her eyes quickly; it was definitely day now, the sun was very VERY bright. She slowly opened them back up again and looked around. She was still in the woods, but it was different. The trees were much taller and thicker. There was very little underbrush to get caught on as well. This was an ancient forest; no loggers had ever seen these trees. She soon noticed that she was standing just at the edge of a small clearing. She noticed the donkey was already grazing about 20 feet away from her and seemed very pleased. He never got to see grass like this back home; Doug didn't care for him much. Kira smiled, it worked. She wandered over to the donkey and patted him on the neck, "I bet you're enjoying this aren't you?" She heard a funny squeak and laughed softly as Victoria chased Victor out of the pouch around her waist and up onto her shoulders where they sat bickering. "What did you do this time Victor?" she teased as she tapped Victor's nose and then she turned again to look around, "Victoria, the classic overbearing housewife…" she chuckled at her little joke. "So where are we? She racked her brain for anything she had ever seen that might help her figure it out, but these trees were different from the ones she had ever seen back home and she couldn't remember seeing anything on tv or in a magazine that quite matched the beauty of the place. "Guess we just need to figure it out then huh?" She patted her gliders as Victoria went back to the pouch and left Victor sitting on the girl's shoulder.

"Jack, come on." Kira took hold of the lead rope she had on Jack's halter and began walking away from the morning sun. It didn't take them long to find a wagon-wide path worn into the earth. She stopped and looked from right to left trying to choose a direction. Left would lead her to the most beautiful mountain range, but right would take her to some plains. She figured it best to go right since she could at the very least find some farms or towns in that direction. She walked for a few hours without meeting anyone before she came upon a small stream that one had to cross to continue on the road. She drank and allowed Jack the same privilege. She offered a handful of water to both gliders who drank willfully. At this point she noticed that the sun was headed down and decided they should cross the stream and try to find somewhere to make camp.

About twenty minutes later she heard voices. She crept up behind some berry bushes and peered through at a small campsite housing 2 men. They were dressed more oddly than she had ever seen in real life. They looked like warriors right out of a Japanese history lesson. -Maybe I'm somewhere near a reenactment?- One of the men said something to the other as he pulled a fish off of the fire and they both erupted into wild laughter. Kira almost gagged at the smell of the two, even from this far away she could tell it had been a VERY long time since either of them had bathed. –Maybe it's better to just find somewhere else to camp.- She slowly began to back up, still half crouched so the men wouldn't notice her presence. Then she suddenly bumped into something very hard, and sniggering.

"Well, well, what have we here?" the smooth melodic voice of a man came from the object that had stopped Kira's escape. She recognized the language as Japanese and thanked the gods she chose to take 

a class in it during high school. She slowly turned and stood to see that she was standing toe to toe with a 6 foot 3 man like none she had ever seen. This man had the face of an angel, a dark angel. He smiled sinisterly as he took Kira's small chin in his soft hand.

Kira gulped, this man may have resembled a human, but there was no way in hell that he was human. She didn't know what he was but he was DEFINITELY not a human. She could hear voices now from behind her; the men by the fire were coming to see what was going on.

This did not seem like the place to be at the moment. Kira tightened her grip on the rope attacked to Jack. She only hoped that when she made a break for it the donkey would not be stubborn and would follow suit.

"Master, what is going on?" one of the men came through bushes with a torch held high so that they could see in the dim light. He gasped when Kira turned her bright green eyes upon him.

"Master, what is this creature?" Kira was slightly offended when she realized the second man was referring to her and not Jack.

"It is an angel. I've never seen such a beautiful thing." The first man was now taking in her entire body. He went from curve to curve and Kira knew he was undressing her with his eyes. It disgusted her. She always knew she was pretty, why else would Doug and his friends continue to chase after her even more as she matured. She also knew she was very lucky to be able to say she was still a virgin and that none of them had fully succeeded in capturing her. Now she was worried she wouldn't be able to make that claim much longer.

"She is a human you imbeciles." The original man, still holding onto her chin now spoke to the men from the camp. "Nothing but a mere human like you, I can smell it in her. Though, I will grant that she is a lovely specimen." He ran his clawed fingers over her cheek, causing her to cringe as a chill went down her spine. Kira was terrified, she couldn't speak at all. Again she tightened her grip on the rope, awaiting a chance to run for her life. But somehow she thought it would be a futile effort. Something about this man told her there was no running away.

The tall man smiled down at her, "You should not be wandering about the forest at night, much less alone. Do you not know how dangerous these woods can be in the night?" His grin widened as he saw in her eyes that she knew the danger was in him. "What do you say boys, shall we invite the pretty lady to join us tonight? We can…protect, her." He never looked away from Kira's fearful face as he spoke, a fact that only made her more frightened.

The other men began to snigger at this, "Oh yes, Master we'll protect her all night long…"

"Oh yes, alllllllll night long…" the men were nudging each other now and laughing at what they apparently thought was a funny conversation.

"Come my dear," the tall man motioned for Kira to follow and began to head toward the camp. The other men walked up to her sides as though to lead her into the camp.

At this moment she acted. She dropped down to one knee and thrust an elbow into each of the men's groins. They both emitted shrieks as they doubled in pain. Then Kira brought her fists to meet with their noses, causing yet another terrible shriek to echo in the forest. She didn't waste any time, she broke into a full run, Jack complying with no problem. She was in the middle of thanking the gods in her head when she was suddenly brought to a full stop as an arm wrapped about her waist. But it didn't stop there. The next thing she knew she had released Jack's rope and was collapsing at the base of a tree twenty feet behind her that had probably embedded some of its bark into her spine. There was a loud whooshing sound as all the air fled her lungs. She barely was able to see the silhouette of the tall man with black hair as he walked toward her. His red eyes smiled as he made it obvious in his chuckle that she had made a huge mistake; and for the second time in twenty-four hours, Kira fell into the abyss of her own consciousness…


	3. Chapter 2 The Demon Lord

_Ok, sorry I didn't update yesterday. I honestly forgot. I will upload the rest of the chapters I have complete today, and then I will upload the next ones as they are finished. There may be occasions when it takes me awhile to upload because of writer's block and the fact that I'm in the middle of reading The Chronicles of Thomas Covenant the Unbeliever and planning a wedding, but I hope you will just hold on and bear with me ok? ALSO, I am looking for a beta, because it's better to have someone else proofread your stuff than to do it yourself. Anyone who is interested let me know. I know I'm not the best writer but I hope I'll be good enough to amuse you for a little bit._

_**Chapter 2 The Demon Lord**_

Kira awoke, not knowing where she was. The last thing she remembered was the face of that monster… She tried to jump to her feet as she opened her eyes but immediately fell back to the hard ground. The pain that shot through her entire body reminded her of just what had caused her to pass out the previous night. She gasped for air and looked up to see the two men from before riffling through her belongings. She quickly got over the sudden pain in her back and scrambled toward the men, ready to kick some serious ass. No man had the right to dig through a woman's belongings, much less men she had only just met and under bad pretenses. She stopped in her tracks when she heard his voice.

"Men, that's enough. She's awoken and I don't think she's very pleased about you going through her belongings. Remember the beating she gave you earlier? Leave it be." The men snarled in complaint but they did what their master ordered and went back to sitting around next to the fire where their breakfast was cooking.

Kira stood fully and began packing everything they had thrown about back into her various bags. When she was done she pulled a mirror out and pulled up the back of her shirt. She tilted the mirror in a way that allowed her to see what sort of injuries she had acquired from the blow the tall man had given her. She cringed as her back came into view. Almost the entire thing was a solid bruise of purple and lined with a sickly green tint. What wasn't bruised was badly scraped and crusted in dried blood. She soon realized the group of men was staring at her intently and she dropped her shirt back and placed the mirror into its place in her bag. She checked to see if Victor and Victoria were ok now. They were both sleeping soundly in the pouch that was strapped to her side, she was thankful for this and she placed a few pieces of dried fruit from the bag into the pouch for them to snack on when they woke.

"Prepare yourselves, we are leaving soon." The tall man stood and walked past Kira. For the first time she wondered if the guy was gay; he tossed his long black hair over his shoulder as he strode past her. He kind of had a bit of that high pitched tone to his voice as well. She almost laughed at the thought of such a scary creature forcing his minions to wear pink.

A few minutes later one of the men had a tight hold on Jack's lead-rope and the tall man came up beside Kira on his horse. "Get on."

Kira's jaw dropped. This asshole wanted her to ride the horse with him? There was no way she was doing that, if she did that, she would have to_ touch_ him…

"Now, woman! Or else I will give you to the men you acquainted yourself with last night." His threat worked and Kira climbed up onto the horse, however reluctantly.

At first she worried that the men may do something to Jack, but after a bit she decided that the beast of burden was too valuable to them to harm over something as petty as getting back at her. She was also very nervous about sharing a horse with this man, partially because she was afraid of him, but mostly because of the shape her back was in and the fact that they had not given her opportunity to clean and treat the wound. She could come down with an infection if she didn't get it taken care of soon and she had come to the decision that there were no hospitals around to pay a visit to.

It didn't take very long for her to lose her fear of the man she shared a horse with though. He talked incessantly and without a point to any of it. He rambled for hours about how amazing he and his men were and that they were the best bandits ever in existence, a fact the men gladly corroborated. The only useful bit of information she could glean from his chatter was that he wasn't human at all, a fact he was proud of. Rather, he was a demon; a moth demon to be exact. Apparently he had special powers and had killed many humans and demons alike. The killing humans part she half believed but she suspected that he wasn't half as powerful a demon as he had led on and probably had never killed any others or at least any worth mentioning.

She realized that she hadn't said a word to any of them and after listening to him talk she decided to keep it that way. She didn't want to egg him on by speaking back. Maybe if she ignored him long enough he would just stop talking…

"And further more, I think you will bring a great price on the market. What with your exotic appearance, for you look nothing like the humans that live here and the strength you obviously possess. Yes, you would make a good slave girl for any nobleman. Are you listening to me woman? You had better be. Oh yes, I don't know your name, what is it woman? I can't very well call you woman all the time now can I? Well, what is it then? Speak up, I haven't got all day. Well, I suppose I do but that is beside the point…"

The demon kept going and going about wanting to know her name, but he never really gave her the chance to answer him, not that she would have anyway.

"I know, I shall call you Kiyoshi. Yes, Kiyoshi, quiet one. It suits you very well indeed."

"But boss, isn't that a man's name?" The man leading the donkey spoke up.

"Nonsense. It suits her very well, it doesn't matter if the name normally goes to males. Besides, my word is law, so shut your insolent trap!"

"Yes master!" The man bowed his head regretfully and marched on.

Kira lazily stared ahead at the setting sun. She was starting to wonder if they would ever stop to make camp. Her ass was sore from riding that horse and was most definitely not helping her injured back. The demon on the horse behind her made no effort to avoid rubbing against her back which made her bite her tongue to keep from screaming from the pain on occasion. As the demon began to chatter of his exploits again Kira focused her attention on the speck on the horizon she had been watching for a few minutes. It wasn't a speck anymore though; they had traveled far enough that she could now see the outline of another being in the distance. She studied it fervently. It was the figure of a human, or at least she thought it was. This being had the longest hair she had ever seen on a man. It had to be a man from the way it was walking and from its shape. There were no feminine curves about this figure. It walked slowly and smoothly ahead of them with a grace even the rambling moth demon didn't possess. This being also had what appeared to be a fluffy pelt of some kind over its right shoulder. She squinted; there was something else, another being, though much shorter than the first. It was walking beside or behind the man, she couldn't tell from this distance. They were catching up at an easy pace though and after a few more minutes she could see him quite clearly with her excellent vision. His hair was white and came well past his buttocks, and it matched the pelt on his shoulder perfectly. He wore a white and red kimono and from what she could see from behind, about half a suit of armor. She could see now he had two swords strapped to his yellow sash as well. This man was definitely a warrior of some kind, and he gave her the creeps. She was never one to go against her intuition and she had a bad feeling about running up on this man with the three bandits she was being held by.

Apparently Jack had the same feeling because at this moment he began to bray loudly, causing the demon and two men to cover their ears and start yelling at him. Kira kept her eyes trained on the figure ahead; he had stopped and was turning to see them.

She gasped when he turned his cool amber eyes on the quartet. Even from this distance she could tell he wasn't looking at the donkey, but directly at her. It gave her a chill the likes of which she had never experienced.

"Kiyoshi! Get this damned animal to shut up! What are you looking at?" The demon shoved her hard off of the horse's back as he turned to see what the girl had been so focused on that she didn't hear him yelling at her.

Kira immediately broke her gaze away from the man ahead when she hit the ground hard. She was lucky she landed the way she did, and that the demon's horse wasn't very tall at all. She stood slowly and limped a tiny bit as she made her way to the braying donkey. She began trying to calm him as the demon spoke to his men.

"Boys, look ahead. He doesn't seem to have anything truly valuable on him to steal; maybe we can sell Kiyoshi to him or some of her belongings." The men sniggered at this and they all began moving at a quicker pace toward the man with white hair.

Kira managed to quiet Jack all the way and shoved the heads of her curious sugar gliders back into their pouch as one of the men grasped her arm and began to force her forward.

They were now no more than twenty feet away from the man that Kira had decided must have been a demon. She could see him clearly now; his hair was more gorgeous than she had expected and those eyes were entrancing. He had two red lines on either cheek and an indigo crescent moon on his forehead. She found herself wishing to reach out and trace over the odd markings with her fingertips. This was the most beautiful man, no, the most beautiful BEING she had ever seen in her life. They stopped about 10 feet from him and she took in every detail of his powerful form that she could; from his pointed ears to the clawed fingers of his only arm. For a moment she felt pain in her chest for his obvious loss of an arm, but it took nothing prom his perfection. He was the gods' masterpiece. She lifted her eyes from his shoes back to those cold eyes, and was shocked to see them staring directly into her own. She couldn't look away…

"Why hello there," the demon bandit greeted this god of beauty cordially. "What a wonderful day it has been."

"How DARE you speak to Lord Sesshomaru!" Everyone's attention was suddenly drawn to the tiny figure that was standing slightly to the left of whom Kira assumed was Lord Sesshomaru. So this demonic angel's name was Sesshomaru…and Lord at that. She could believe it; he had that regal air about him.

"A toad demon? Lord?" The bandit thought for a moment as he stared at the tiny green man. He looked up to Sesshomaru and smiled. "Ah, a demon Lord. Forgive my rudeness milord," he bowed slightly and smiled at the prospect of making some money out of this being.

"No one gave you permission to speak you lowly thief!" the short green demon swung his staff toward the group of intruders and the mouth on one of the two heads swung open.

"Jaken, stop," Sesshomaru's smooth voice flowed into Kira's ears like an ancient glacial waterfall. It was almost overwhelming. His voice matched his appearance perfectly. She knew this man was cold, calculating, and he never took anything for granted; he was truly powerful. She had a natural aversion to him, at the same time as an attraction. It was as though a set of two powerful magnets were at war between them, one pushing and the other pulling. She feared him, but at the same time she wanted to run to him and cling to him forever.

One of the men stuck his tongue out at Jaken childishly and then grunted.

"Oh how rude of me, my name is Serbah and these are my men. We are not thieves but merchants," Serbah smiled ruefully as he waved his hands toward the two men. "And this," he climbed off his horse and took Kira's shoulders, "is Kiyoshi. I see you've taken a liking to her. She is one of our products we are willing to sell to you for a good price." He smiled again as he patted her shoulder. He had noticed that Sesshomaru never removed his eyes from the girl the entire time, not even when he ordered the toad to be quiet.

Kira was barely paying attention to Serbah; the whole of her attention was located on Sesshomaru. She was well aware of the attention she was getting from the demon Lord, and she wasn't sure if it was a good thing or not.

Sesshomaru kept his eyes trained on the girl called Kiyoshi. She hadn't made a sound since he had noticed her and she never faltered under his stare. She actually seemed to revel in it. As soon as they had come over the horizon he was curious. Tensuiga had reacted to her, and he never ignored Tensuiga, the sword had saved his life more than once. And now that the girl was this close the sword felt like it would jump from its hilt. Now this bandit was trading to trade her to him.

"I have no need of a woman, I need only warriors." Sesshomaru's voice again chimed in Kira's ears. It reverberated through her entire being. It was so magical.

"Well, she could easily be a warrior. You should have seen the hell she put these men through last night. Thos one still has a slight gimp in his step from the blow she gave them." Serbah laughed as he motioned to the man behind him, who hung his head in shame.

Sesshomaru thought for a moment, "Have her fight the other, if she wins I will relieve you of her and her belongings." The demon lord turned his cold gaze on Serbah then, waiting for a reply.

Serbah almost shook with excitement. He knew she would win and they hadn't even gone over prices before Sesshomaru had agreed to pay. He could charge whatever he liked… "Deal! Now, get over there, do your thing!" He barked to the man and to Kira. "Take whatever you like as a weapon Kiyoshi, but you had better not lose."

Five minutes later the two opponents were standing in the center of the road about ten feet apart. The bandit had a sword in his hand and Kira had a small black box she had taken from her pack.

"It'll be a pleasure to beat you woman, after what you did to us last night," the man chuckled as he shifted on his feet. He lunged at Kira and a moment later he was shaking on the ground and screaming in agony. After a few seconds he stopped moving, he was unconscious.

Kira tugged the wires off of the man and wound them back into her tazer. She had turned the thing on full power and was suddenly grateful she had had the foresight to buy the most powerful one on the legal market. She walked back to her donkey and put the weapon back in it's place, then looked up to see Sesshomaru staring at her as blankly as he had before. She glanced down at the toad named Jaken who stood with his jaw dropped and eyes wide. She smiled at this reaction and returned her gaze to Sesshomaru.

"Come," Sesshomaru turned and began walking again. Kira hurried with Jack up beside Jaken who followed a few steps behind the Demon lord.

"Wait! You haven't paid for her yet!" Serbah pulled out his sword and took a battle stance. With the flick of the wrist a green whip came from Sesshomaru's claws and decapitated all three of the bandits.

"I said I would relieve you of her, not pay for her…"

Kira gazed at the demon ahead of her with a mixture of adoration and fear. Had she really ended up in a better situation or was she in more danger than she knew?


	4. Chapter 3 Rin

_**Chapter 3**_

Kira followed along behind her new owner in silence. Every now and then she would catch distrustful glances from Jaken, who obviously disliked her completely. The next time he scowled at her she stuck her tongue out at him. He gasped and started to shout at her for her insolence.

"Jaken, be quiet," Sesshomaru ordered him from ahead without looking back or slowing pace.

This only made the toad's hate for the girl rise. Kira smiled and stuck her tongue out at him once more, this time in a mocking way. This began a battle of gestures and expressions that raged throughout the next hour. Kira finally simply flipped both middle fingers up at the tiny toad; this caused yet another squawk from him as he prepared to flat out physically attack her. She prepared herself as well, intending to pop the little imp in the forehead if he tried anything. They never got the chance to finish their little battle though.

"Jaken, human, come." Sesshomaru ordered the pair to follow him off of the beaten path and into a small clearing. Kira looked around the small clearing, they weren't alone here. There was a beast of some sort lying on the other side of the area. It raised its head and stared at the intruders. Then it raised its other head, sniffed the air, and turned to look in the same direction as the first head. Kira was amazed. It looked like a two headed dragon to her. Where in the hell did her spell take her?

"Ah Un, where is Rin?" Sesshomaru questioned the beast but it didn't have to reply. At this instant a small girl poked her head up from the other side of the dragon and squealed.

She ran up to the demon lord's feet and bowed, "Lord Sesshomaru! I'm so glad to see you!" She coughed a little, "and Master Jaken, I'm glad to see you too." A slight cough escaped her lips again, "I have a present for you Master Jaken." She placed a flower wreath on the toad's bald head. She then noticed Kira and walked over to stand before her. She studied the older girl closely and then looked up to her face.

Kira stared down into the deep brown eyes of the little girl; she was absolutely adorable. She coughed once more.

"You're beautiful…What's your name pretty lady?" Kira couldn't help but smile at the small girl. She twisted one small foot in the dirt and tilted her head to the side like a puppy. She was the cutest thing Kira had ever seen.

"She does not speak, Rin. Leave her be." Sesshomaru ordered Rin who just coughed a little more and let her smile fade.

"That's ok, I used to not talk either when I first met Sesshomaru, you'll learn eventually." Rin smiled, patted Kira's hand, and skipped away to put more wreaths on the dragon's heads. One head sighed as the other seemed to smile.

"Come," Kira turned to see Sesshomaru walking through the trees. She followed, leading Jack behind her. He led her about 30 feet from the camp and stopped suddenly. He turned to her and said, "Bathe." Then he walked past her and back to the camp.

Bathe? What was she supposed to do, collect dew from the plants and wash herself with it? She sighed and looked around. In front of her the plants were grassier, maybe…yep. She walked through the tall grass and came up right beside a hot spring. She looked around to be sure she was alone, tied Jack to a nearby tree and took her bathing utensils with her to the water, where she disrobed and walked into the pool. It felt great on her sore muscles to be in warm water, and even better to get the chance to treat her back. She floated for a bit, and then decided she should probably hurry or else he may send Jaken after her, something she definitely didn't want to happen. She quickly washed her hair and scrubbed her body. Then she carefully washed the scrape on her back and rinsed everything off. Once out of the water she dried with a towel she made sure to bring with her and got out her first aid kit. It took some odd positioning to get triple antibiotic ointment on all the parts of her back that needed it but a few minutes later she was dressed and ready to walk back to the clearing. It had felt good to finally get to take a bath, she knew she needed it and was grateful of Sesshomaru for the chance, and a hot spring no less!

When she came back to the clearing she noticed Sesshomaru was leaning his back on a tree as he sat, eyes closed. She saw his ear flick when she entered and she knew he knew she was there. Rin was making more wreaths for Ah Un who had barely any room for more around the two necks and Jaken was hoping about in a corner trying to catch a bug in the grass. She tied Jack to another tree with his rope long enough to allow him to feast on the tall grass around him.

She was amazed that no one had made a fire yet, and the sun was very low in the sky, the moon already rising. She sighed and began to collect sticks from the clearing. It wasn't long until every stick in the small area was now a part of two piles, one which she had carefully formed to maintain a good fire, and the other beside it to feed the fire as the night grew. Rin had stopped what she was doing and watched the older girl closely. Sesshomaru had opened his eyes as she tied out Jack and watched her without movement or sound the entire time. Jaken had caught his grasshopper and eaten it and was working on another. Kira pulled her Zippo lighter from her pocket and used it to light the dried grass she had placed under the sticks to ignite the fire. In a few moments she had a good fire going and she sat back on her heels to admire her handiwork.

Sesshomaru was watching her intently. This human had just started a fire in the palm of her hand. She had not used the traditional aids of flint or steel or sticks. He tilted his head slightly as he watched her.

Kira walked over to the tree Jaken was chasing a bug at and tugged on a weak branch. It didn't quite give so she stuck her foot on Jaken's head for leverage, pushing his face into the dirk as a loud squawk emitted from his mouth. Rin giggled and coughed as she went back to her wreaths. Sesshomaru let a small hint of a smile tug at the corner of his lip; the girl was amusing at the least.

The branch broke and Kira took it with her back to the fire where she stuck it in the ground out of the flames' reach. She retrieved a second stick and did the same on the other side. She now had two Y 

shaped stands that would hold another stick about a foot above the flames. She went to Jack and unhooked a medium sized kettle she had tied to his harness and pulled two cans of beef stew from the pack on his back. She then realized she had left all of this on the poor animal and removed it all from his back, sitting it up against the tree. The animal was very thankful for the reprieve and did a little skip before heading right back to grazing. She smiled, patted his shoulder and took the items she had chosen back to the fire. She hooked the handle of the kettle onto a sturdy stick and hung it over the fire, and then she opened the two cans of food and used a spoon to scoop the contents into the kettle.

As Kira tended to the stew she watched Rin with curiosity. The girl seemed to have some sort of cold. She kept coughing and it was worrying her. She noticed there were no supplies with them and she assumed that meant the girl hadn't had food, unless she had gone out to find some on her own. Rin finally left Ah Un and slowly walked over to Sesshomaru, where she curled up to the fur pelt that dangled from his shoulder. The girl coughed again and buried her face in the soft fur. Kira was vaguely wondering what that fur pelt came from when she saw the tip of it twitch. Her eyes lit up and she tried not to show too much of her surprise, he was watching her. She stared at the tip of the pet, it twitched again; much like the tip of a cat's tail might. She tore her eyes from the fur and looked up to Sesshomaru's face. He was staring at her now. Kira looked back to her stew and stirred it, blushing. Maybe it was his tail. It hadn't occurred to her before but it was possible right? She released a puff of air as she tested the stew's temperature with her fingertip. It was good and hot, but not too hot. She used the spoon to scoop some of it into a cup and she looked up to Rin. She filled another cup and put spoons into each.

Kira stood with the two cups and walked toward the demon Lord. She looked him in the eye the entire time, making sure she approached carefully. She stopped in front of him. Rin coughed again, this time not stopping for a few moments. Kira took her attention away from the demon and kneeled beside the girl. She touched Rin on the shoulder to get her attention. The child looked up sleepily at Kira.

Kira held out one of the cups to Rin, who looked up to Sesshomaru for approval. He nodded and she took the cup. She stared into the steaming brown substance. She sniffed it, it smelled ok… She looked up to Kira who had taken her own spoon into her hand and had begun eating. Rin crinkled her nose and picked up the shiny metal spoon. She had never seen something like this before and didn't know how she was supposed to use it. She watched Kira carefully and tried to mimic her motions; but she couldn't hold the spoon.

Kira giggled and placed the spoon into the small girl's hand the way it was supposed to be. She showed her to blow on it lightly first to cool it, then helped her get her first bite of beef stew. It was amazing! The girl gobbled every bit out of her cup quickly and then stared at Kira who was slowly eating hers, savoring every bit. Kira noticed the girl was watching her and smiled as she took her cup and refilled it at the fire, then returned with it. Rin squealed with joy and began to eat it at the same pace as Kira. She tried to mimic every move the older woman made, which caused then both to laugh.

Sesshomaru watched the interlude with detached interest. This woman was strange indeed, and Rin took to her instantly.

When Rin finished eating she handed her cup and spoon back to Kira who cleaned then in the hot spring and brought them back. As she placed the items back into her pack, Rin began coughing again. This time more terribly than any time before. Kira dug into her pack and took out her first aid box, bringing it over to the girl. She tapped Rin's cheek and opened her mouth wide to show that the girl should do the same. She understood and did exactly as she was told. Kira studied her throat the best she could in the firelight, which wasn't well. She reached into the box and pulled out a digital thermometer. She tugged on Rin's chin, opening her mouth. She stuck the thermometer under her tongue and closed her mouth. They waited, Kira patiently and Rin confused. After a moment the thermometer beeped, which caused Rin to squeal and drop the thermometer. Jaken also yipped; even Sesshomaru seemed taken slightly off guard at the noise. Kira had anticipated it and caught the object as it fell from the girl's mouth. She examined it for a moment; it said she was 100 degrees. Definitely sick. Kira wiped the instrument off on her shirt and replaced it in the box. She pulled out a bottle of cough syrup and read the back. She looked up at Rin, studied her from a moment, and then read again.

Sesshomaru watched curiously. There was no doubt the woman was doing some sort of healing process on the girl, but what he wasn't sure. He had never seen any of the objects this woman possessed.

Kira carefully measured the appropriate amount of the gooey red liquid, and then started to hand it to Rin. She thought better of it and went back to her bag. She returned with a bottle of lemonade, better to have something for her drink afterwards… She then tilted Rin's head back and ordered her to drink the syrup. Rin crinkled her nose at the smell of the stuff, and as soon as the liquid touched her tongue she began to gag and squirm. Kira wouldn't allow it though and forced her to swallow every last bit of it. She had expected Sesshomaru to decapitate her at this time but she didn't care, the girl needed it. He didn't act though; he simply sat beside then in curious silence. As soon as Kira was sure Rin had swallowed the last of it she unscrewed the top on the lemonade and handed it to the girl. Rin had a look of disgust on her face that could have as easily come from liking Jaken's armpit as it did from the medicine. She eagerly took the drink from Kira and began to swallow it. By the time she handed it back to the woman it was half empty.

Kira laid out her sleeping bag beside Rin and helped her climb inside. In a few minutes the drowsy effect of the medicine had kicked in and the girl was sound asleep. Kira smiled as she ran her fingers through the small girl's hair. She pulled herself away and looked up to see Sesshomaru's golden gaze. He was watching her still. She gave a sort of half smile and she took something from her pocket. She sat cross-legged beside Rin and opened the silver and white package of the rectangular object. Sesshomaru's nose twitched as he sniffed the air. Kira smiled as she broke off a piece of the cookies and cream candy bar she had been waiting for the chance to eat all night. She noticed Sesshomaru watching her and she offered him a piece, which he refused.

"I do not eat human food."

She continued to try until she finally gave up. After finishing her candy bar she laid the rapper on the ground between them and curled up in the sleeping bag beside the child. Five minutes later Sesshomaru recognized the sound of her steady breathing. She was asleep. He leaned forward and picked up the 

wrapper. There was something inside. He tore it open and found that she had left him a piece. He popped it into his mouth and allowed the confection to melt in his mouth. He almost smiled as he stared up at the moon…


	5. Chapter 4 A New Home

_**Chapter 4**_

Kira walked along the path beside Ah Un. They had been awake and moving for a few hours now and she was getting bored. None of them talked, not even Rin. She sighed; this was almost as bad as when she was with the bandits. Then she remembered something and began to dig in one of the bags on the donkey's back for something. A moment later she was listening to some music on her iPod. She amused herself this way for about an hour, the music playing loudly in her ears, drowning out all other sounds. She closed her eyes for a second and enjoyed the music. When she opened her eyes again she almost fell on her ass. Sesshomaru was right in front of her and he didn't look pleased. He snatched the iPod from her hand, jerking the headphones out of her ears at the same time. "Turn it off." He held it up to her face. She blinked quickly a few times and pushed the button until it was silent. Sesshomaru wound up the headphones and stuck it into his sash, there was no way she was getting it back anytime soon.

Kira grunted, she was enjoying that song too…Her attention was then captured by Rin as she grasped the older girl's hand. She watched her for a moment. The little girl had been walking beside her the whole way; she looked up into Kira's eyes and smiled. Kira smiled back, and then squeaked. Rin looked at her shocked. Kira smiled and pointed at Victor as he ran from his pouch to Kira's shoulder; Victoria right on his heels. Kira shook her head as Victoria went back to the pouch, once again leaving Victor on her shoulder to contemplate whatever it was he had done wrong. Rin Squealed when she saw the creatures. "What are those?!" She smiled and looked at Victor like he was cute enough to eat. Kira giggled and held Victor out for Rin to take. Rin's huge brown eyes looked up to Kira like she couldn't believe she was allowed to hold her animal. She took him from the older girl with a forced gentleness; she was almost shaking from her excitement.

Rin played with Victor for about half an hour before Kira realized the girl's steps were faltering. She hadn't coughed as much as she had the night before, but she was still sick. She had forced the girl to take another helping of cough syrup that morning and it seemed to be working, but what she needed was rest. Kira scooped Rin up into her arms. Rin immediately wrapped her arms and legs around the front of Kira and rested her head on her shoulder. Victor curled up on Rin's shoulder under her hair and the two of them fell asleep quickly.

Sesshomaru observed all of this with his senses quietly. The woman definitely had some maternal instinct, which is precisely why he took her to begin with. Rin needed a caretaker, and this woman seemed a natural for the part. She was strange, like his brother's human wench, but nowhere near as annoying as she. He couldn't understand how his brother could stand the company of such a clumsy and bossy woman. A slave woman was much more preferable to a man such as him.

"Kiyoshi," Sesshomaru stopped, causing the procession behind him to do the same. "Ride Ah Un, I can't have you wearing yourself out because of Rin." Kira just stood there. He wanted her to climb up on the dragon? She turned and looked at Ah Uh, who nodded both of his heads and lay on the ground as low as he could to make it possible for the woman to climb on while keeping the child asleep. Kira nodded and with one motion swung herself onto his back. Rin mumbled a bit but she never woke.

Sesshomaru was amazed at the grace she showed as a human; though he knew it to be used only in order to sustain the child's slumber. He resumed his pace, as did the others. Jaken was now leading Jack, and he didn't seem too very pleased by this.

Kira was amazed at how smooth the ride was on this dragon. It was a slow rolling motion that didn't hurt at all; she doubted it possible to get saddle sore on Ah Un. They were moving faster now that they didn't have to slow pace for Rin and herself.

"Finally, we're here." Jaken spoke with relief. Kira's eyes got wide and she looked ahead to see where "Here" was. They were just cresting a hill when a massive field came into view. This field was partially divided into farmland, but the majority of it was surrounded by a tall wall. From their location they could see over the wall to the many buildings and soldiers running about inside. The most amazing part of this though was the castle. On the left side of the field was a mountain, and attached to it was the most exquisite piece of Japanese architecture that Kira had ever seen. Actually she wasn't even sure if it was Japanese; it looked like a cross between that and European. It had the basic shape and look of a Japanese palace, but the size and foreboding strength of a European castle. It was easily 5 stories high and the base of it was built from stone that looked like it came straight from the mountain. As she admired it she realized it wasn't attached to the mountain, but rather it was built into the mountain. She guessed that the majority of the building was underground, within the mountain's base. She tore her gaze from the palace itself and back to the area around it. There was no castle town, or at least it wasn't within the barriers of the castle itself. There was a town a few miles away on the other side of the fortress. She watched farmers in the fields around them as they came closer and closer. Many of them looked human, which amazed her. They never looked up at the group as they passed quietly through. She guessed they were either slaves or simply knew better than to oppose Sesshomaru. It made her kind of nervous.

It took half an hour more to get to the gates of the fortress, which swung open with a lot of shouting at Sesshomaru's arrival. When they came inside there was a line of soldiers in full uniform on either side of the path they walked down toward the main entrance to the castle. It looked even bigger at this distance, and she guessed it would take them another 15 to 20 minutes just to cross the grounds and get to the castle itself. She looked over the soldiers' heads from the back of the dragon and on to some of the other buildings. She watched as battalions of demon soldiers exited and entered some of the buildings. She suspected the largest of these buildings was a training hall of some sort. Even from this distance she could hear the men in combat inside.

They finally made it to the castle and Sesshomaru stopped before the steps to the door. He began ordering various demons around them," Take these to my office, put this animal in the stables and see to it that it is fed and watered. Kiyoshi, come." Kira slid off of the dragon's back as it lay on the ground once more. It followed as a demon led Jack to the stables. Another demon was now carrying all of Kira's belongings. That demon quickly disappeared from sight as he fled through a servant's entrance on the left of the stairs. Kira wasn't too worried, Sesshomaru had ordered them to his office and she assumed she would see them again. She realized she was being left behind as Sesshomaru climbed the stairs to 

the door and she ran to keep up. She managed not to bounce Rin around and was relieved to see she was still asleep.

Sesshomaru led her through the door to a massive entrance hall. There were only a few people inside, various demons dusting or passing through. They all stopped what they were doing to pay their respects to Sesshomaru as he passed without acknowledging them. Kira was fascinated by one demoness in particular who had some sort of Mohawk; she would have to figure out what kind of demon she was later though because once again she was being left behind.

She followed Sesshomaru through the various halls as he walked with a heightened pace. It was hard for her to keep up with Rin but she figured if Jaken could do it so could she. She made sure to remember what turns they made in case she got the chance to try and go outside again. She wanted to explore this place as soon as she could and she doubted it would be difficult to get lost. Six hallways and three staircases later she found herself being stopped in front of a paper screen door.

"This is Rin's room, remain here until I send for you," Sesshomaru disappeared around a corner, leaving Kira slightly confused. She sighed and opened the door to find a small, simple bedroom. There was a rolled up futon mattress in the corner and a small dresser on one side. Various toys were lined up along the walls and drawings were pinned all over all the walls. Kira smiled as she used her foot to unroll the futon in the corner and laid Rin on it. Victor awoke and repositioned himself on the futon curled up to Rin.

"Excuse me, water for Lady Rin." A demoness with the most lovely shade of blue for her hair entered the room and sat a ceramic pitcher on the dresser along with some wash clothes and a change of dress. She bowed to Kira and left the room, never raising her eyes. Kira walked over and brought the pitcher and rags to Rin's side. She stripped Rin's old kimono off and gave the girl a sponge bath. She put the thin white kimono the demoness had brought on the girl and left the cool wet cloth on her forehead, in an attempt to help break her fever.

"Lord Sesshomaru sends for you, Lady." A different demoness entered the room and bowed to Kira. She stood and looked down at Rin. "Someone will come to tend to Lady Rin, please, Lord Sesshomaru waits."

Kira nodded and followed the demoness around the corner and up the stairs. They stopped at the end of the hall and the demoness turned, bowed to Kira and left. Kira raised her hand to knock on the door but didn't get the chance. Jaken opened the door, with a very disgruntled look upon his face.

"Come in Kiyoshi." Sesshomaru ordered for her to enter as Jaken left. The toad slammed the door behind her almost catching her heel in the process. She spun about to give Jaken a piece of her mind but thought better of it. She turned around to investigate the room she had entered. The first thing she noticed was Sesshomaru sitting on a cushion behind a low table in the back of the room. He was looking down at a piece of parchment he was neatly writing on with a brush and ink. "Sit." She slowly stepped forward and sat on a matching cushion opposite the demon lord.

They sat in silence for a few minutes as he finished writing whatever it was on the parchment. Kira waited patiently, she figured he would tell her why she was there whenever he was ready and she had no desire to rush him. She used the opportunity to examine the room around her. It was plain, nothing to divulge his position of power. There were a couple of dressers and a mirror made of polished metal hanging in a corner. On top of one of the dressers was another pitcher full of water like the one brought to Rin's room and a deep bowl she assumed was a small wash basin for his face.

"Rin is ill," Kira brought her attention back to the demon when he spoke. He was sitting tall and straight and staring her straight in the eye. She nodded in agreement with him. "She is a human; I will not deny that I know nothing of human illness. You are here to take care of her, make her well. But I will not have a useless being in my home. When she is better you need to be useful in some other manner if you wish to remain. For this reason I need to see what skills you have." Kira just nodded again, this was the most he had ever said in her presence.

Sesshomaru watched her as he spoke. She did not keep her head down as a servant or peasant would. She sat tall and straight, something most humans didn't do, only those who thought themselves to be nobility. But she wasn't arrogant and she did not defy any order he gave, this was more a sign of past servitude. For these reasons he could not figure out what sort of life she had had previously.

The demon remained silent for a long time. Kira just sat with her legs crossed waiting. She began to lightly tap out a rhythm on her right thigh. It was too quiet for human ears but she could feel the rhythm. Sesshomaru listened to the tapping as he watched her. It was a pleasant little beat, perhaps she was a musician? He followed her eyes as she looked toward his desk; she was staring at one of his papers. At first he thought she was just staring into space, but then he saw her lips twitching slightly to form the syllables on the page. She lost interest after only a few lines and looked back up to him. She blushed slightly as she realized he was still watching her, the rhythm disappeared.

She could read; that was very important to him. This meant that she was educated; she could be useful in many respects. He decided to test her. He pushed a piece of blank parchment toward her, along with the brush and bottle of ink. She looked down at it for a second, and then back up at him. He could see her question in her eyes; she didn't have a clue what he wanted her to do with it.

"I want to see you write." She looked confused but she took the brush in her hand and looked back at him. She wanted to know what to write. "Write whatever you wish." He leaned back slightly. Letting her write what she wanted was part of the plan. The kind of thing she would write would tell him more about her personality and upbringing.

Kira thought for a moment, what sort of thing should she write? Then it hit her. She dipped the brush and after deciding she didn't know how to write it word for word in Japanese, she wrote in English.

Sesshomaru waited patiently as she wrote. She had her head tilted slightly to the right as she worked. She unconsciously brushed her deep red hair back off of her left shoulder and around the right, keeping it from falling onto the paper as she leaned over it. She had lovely hair for a human, and a shade he had never seen. As she wrote he thought on her appearance. She wasn't of the same race as the humans of 

this land, this he knew since he first saw her. Her skin was very pale, and her figure had much more curvature to it than the local humans; she had wide hips for good childbearing, a small waist and a large bosom resembling that of the succubae. An image came to his recollection; a painting from his childhood. A friend of his father's had travelled the world centuries earlier. She brought stories of various peoples. There was one group that she found were horrendously unhygienic, she called them Europeans. They reeked of filth and were completely unlike the people of their home. She had encountered one beautiful woman there in her journeys that gave her cause to paint her portrait. The woman in the painting had the same figure as Kiyoshi, but her hair color was different entirely, it was some shade of yellow. Perhaps Kiyoshi was some faraway descendant of that race.

Kira finished her work and passed it to Sesshomaru. It was difficult to write with a paintbrush so she had written very slowly.

Sesshomaru ceased his inner thoughts and took the paper from her. He examined it for a moment before the shape of the figures seemed familiar. He thought back to his lessons as a boy. The friend who had encountered Europeans also brought back their language, and his father had seen fit to have it taught to his eldest son. It took him a moment to remember all of the letters and make sense of it, but when he did he was impressed. Her message showed wisdom; it read:

"It is better to remain silent and be thought a fool than to speak out and remove all doubt."- Abraham Lincoln

He didn't know who this Abraham Lincoln was but he assumed he was a good teacher.

Kira jumped slightly when there was a knock on the door. Sesshomaru ordered entrance and a servant came stumbling into the room with a tray. Kira recognized a bottle of sake and two small cups sitting on the tray. She then poured the liquid into each of the cups and placed one in front of Sesshomaru, then Kira. She bowed and left the room. Kira just stared at the cup. She had never had sake before, but she heard it wasn't as strong as moonshine, which she had had many times in the past.

Sesshomaru took his cup and sipped at it lightly. He continued to watch the girl the entire time. She looked up to him and he nodded toward the cup. She took it in her hand, sniffed its contents, and tipped it up; pouring the entirety of the contents into her mouth at once. She sat the cup down and smiled, she liked this stuff.

"You will be taking care of Rin. You're room will be an adjoining room to both of our chambers. When you are not caring for Rin you will be by my side as a scribe and all-around handy servant. You shall have two hours a day, just before sunset, to spend to yourself. Know that you will be welcome in almost all areas of my home, except for the military bed-quarters. You will be referred to as Lady and ranked higher than any other servant, but you will be lower than my generals and myself. Everyone will know this and you are to be treated with respect. If anyone does not respect you, you are to report to me immediately." Sesshomaru spoke quickly and with an authority that she dared not defy. "You're belongings have already been sent to your chambers, go there now." Kira stared at him, "The room the 

right of Rin's." He took his eyes from her and returned to whatever paperwork he had been doing before she came. She knew this meant it was time to go.


	6. Chapter 5 The Bath House

_**Chapter 5**_

Kira found her room without any trouble, and she was pleased to see that it was slightly larger than Rin's. She stood in the doorway and examined the room carefully. There was a rolled-up futon in one corner, two small dressers in the opposite corner and a table-desk much like Sesshomaru's in the corner to the left of the door. There was a cushion with this table and a pitcher of water on one of the dressers of the same style as Rin's. There were three doors to the room, the one she was standing in, one to the left and one to the right. She knew the one to the left led to Rin's room and she assumed that the other led to Sesshomaru's. She noticed all of her bags were lying on the floor beside the futon. She stepped inside, sliding the door shut behind her. She was still fascinated by this place. The walls were solid but the doors were the traditional paper.

She opened her bags and began to unpack everything. She folded her clothes and placed them in the various drawers, making sure everything was organized. She giggled when she felt Victoria climb up her side and tickle her cheek with her nose. She took a piece of dried fruit from a bag, which Victoria took graciously as she went back into the pouch. She set the bag of Glider food on one of the dressers and pulled the last article from her bag. She walked over to the table and sat on the cushion.

She sat the large book she inherited from her father on the table and ran her fingers over its cover. "Thank you," she whispered. She opened the book and sifted casually through its contents. She turned and looked lazily out the window behind her. The sun was starting to go down.

"Kiyoshi, come." Kira jumped when she heard Sesshomaru's voice from the door to his room. When had he left his office and gone in there? She stood up, shrugging off the question and went to the door. She waited a second before sliding the door open and stepping inside.

She didn't have time to examine the contents of this room because as soon as she stepped inside something flew at her head from the left. She thanked her quick reaction speed as she caught the object and held it out to see it. She was holding a bundle of clothing. She frowned and looked up at her assailant. Sesshomaru was leaning back on a dresser with a basket in his hand.

He walked up to her and handed the basket to her. She placed the bundle within the basket and looked up to see him leaving the room. "Come, Kiyoshi." She jumped and ran a few steps to catch up to him as he entered the hallway. He walked with a slightly more leisurely pace than he had as they traveled, but his long strides still required her to walk quickly to keep up. He led her through hallways, down stairs and into a garden. She wanted so badly to linger and explore the beautiful place but he kept moving. They crossed the gardens completely and stopped just outside a rather large shed, well, it looked a lot like a shed to her. She stared past Sesshomaru at the tall double doors and at the guards standing motionlessly at either side of them. Then she looked up at the roof. The building was made with two roofs, the one in the center raised slightly from the original to allow for a gap between the two. She assumed this was for lighting purposes until she noticed smoke. It was hard to see in the poor light of dusk but there was a bit of smoke, or steam rising from the gap. It was right at that moment that she realized what this was, it was a bath house. Her eyes widened as the guards opened the doors to allow them through.

Sesshomaru passed through the doors into the ante chamber and noticed the girl was missing. He turned slightly to see that she was standing frozen in the path outside the doors, staring at him like he was death himself. It was difficult to restrain a smile; she looked like she would die. "Come." He turned and began walking again.

Kira followed nervously. She just hoped that he didn't expect her to bath in the same section as him or something. Maybe she'd be lucky and he would just take a quick bath and let her sit in the ante chamber to wait. The doors shut loudly behind her and she jumped a little. She was trapped with him now.

Sesshomaru slid a screen door to the side and stepped through into a dimly lit room. Kira vaguely wondered how they kept the paper door from falling apart in all the steam but didn't get a chance to inspect it.

"Kiyoshi, follow." She followed the man into the room and was astonished. The bath house wasn't what she thought it would be; which was a room with some running water and bath tubs or something. It was a hot spring with a building erected around it. The floor under her bare feet was smooth stone, flat and level. It was cut into abruptly about ten feet away to form a very large basin where the spring flowed. At the back was a small waterfall that fell roughly on a flat rock sticking just above the water's surface. There were a few islands of natural stone jutting up out of the water and a small tree sat neatly in the center of the spring, growing on one of the larger islands.

Kira tore her eyes from the water to see Sesshomaru standing at a bamboo bench on her left. He was fumbling with his sash; it was difficult for him to untie it with one hand. Without thinking Kira walked over and sat the basket of bath supplies on the bench. She reached up and gently untied the demon lord's yellow sash.

Sesshomaru simply watched the girl work. He had not given her permission to help him, nor did he order it, but here she was doing it anyway. He watched as a pink flush came over her cheeks when she realized just what she was doing. As soon as he sash was undone she backed away quickly and turned away from him.

Kira could have sworn she heard a low rumble coming from Sesshomaru, a chuckle. She tried not to watch him as she knew he was undressing, but finally the curiosity took over and she turned her head enough to watch him from the corner of her eye. She almost gasped as she saw his shirt slide off his back. The muscles were so incredibly perfect, and not a blemish. Even with his missing arm his body just seemed perfect. She could only imagine how amazing his form would be if he still had his left arm. She noticed his pants begin to fall and her cheeks turned pink. She looked up and saw that Sesshomaru was staring right at her. She stiffened and turned away quickly, her cheeks now blazing red. A moment later she heard a splash as the man jumped into the water. She now felt safe enough to open her eyes and take a seat on the bench beside the basket.

She watched as Sesshomaru swam around a bit. She blushed yet again when he dove under water, causing his round buttocks to stick up out of the water momentarily. She had to admit to herself that it was the best ass she had ever seen. After a few minutes she started to get a little bored and decided to 

look through the basket that she had now moved into her lap. There were a few assorted oils and soap bars, all of which had pleasant, but not strong, odors. She picked up the bundle of clothing and started looking through it. She found a shirt and pants set a lot like the ones Sesshomaru normally wore, but silk. And then she found a smaller silk robe. It had the same patterns as the rest but the spots of red continued down over the chest. She was starting to wonder why he would have two sets of clothing in this basket when he called to her.

"Kiyoshi, bring the soaps." She sat the clothing on the bench and carried the soap basket over to the edge of the water. She tried to hand it to him but he didn't take it. She was starting to get nervous from the way he was staring at her now. "Take off your clothes." Her eyes got wide and she gasped. She stood straight and looked at him with a hatred he didn't know she could possess. "You smell of dirty human and I will not have that near me. Remove your clothing now, woman, and bathe." The hatred in her eyes faded to simple aggravation and she crossed her arms. She really didn't want to get in the water with him did she? He thought for a moment and decided to try something that his mother used to use, though he knew it would have a totally different effect from him.

Kira's eyes began to widen as she saw Sesshomaru start to push himself up out of the water, and then he said it. "Don't make me have to come out there and get you." The last thing she wanted or needed was a wet, naked man grabbing her. She "eek"-ed and shook her arms in front of her as though to say it wouldn't be necessary. To her relief Sesshomaru lowered himself back into the water and waited patiently.

This was going to be horrible. She slowly began to undress, starting with her shirt. Sesshomaru watched intently as she tossed the shirt to the bench behind her and slid out of her strange pants. She stood nervously in front of him in the oddest underwear he had ever seen. It was all black and only seemed to cover the essentials. Her body was completely unmarred, which thoroughly surprised him. Most human women would have many scars from hard labor, or at least a few from childbirth, but there were none. He looked up; her face was red now and she glared at him. She used her hand to make a motion that told him to turn around. He decided it best to go ahead and let her have some privacy so he turned his back to her. Kira took off her bra and panties in record time and dove into the water before Sesshomaru had a chance to get a view of her nude body.

She surfaced in the water about five feet from the demon lord, who was staring at her with one eyebrow raised slightly. He swam up to her and she quickly stepped away, covering her chest with her arms. He wasn't about to let her back away from him when he didn't want her to, so he quickly took hold of her left arm above the elbow. She squirmed and tried to get away from him but she only slid on the smooth stone floor under the water, which caused her legs and lower body to rub up against his own. She squealed as she regained her balance and stood facing him, never feeling more embarrassed in her life. She stopped fighting him now when she noticed he just stared at her, as though she hadn't just proven physically to herself his manhood. She blinked quickly at his gaze, it was almost creepy.

Sesshomaru just stared into the woman's eyes; he had never seen anything so entrancing. They seemed eternally deep and drew him in. Kira started to loosen up. He seemed more curious than anything now. 

Just then she got an idea. She smiled slightly and stared at the man with loving eyes. The sudden change in expression took the demon off guard and he leaned back a little bit. Kira smiled ever so sweetly as she took her right hand off her body and lifted it toward his face. Her fingers began to head toward his crescent moon birthmark. Sesshomaru recoiled from the attempted contact, no woman but his mother had ever touched his markings, and that was only to tell him of their meanings. Kira's plan worked perfectly. As he back away his grip on her arm faltered and she fell back into the water, swimming to the other side of the spring before he could see what was going on.

Sesshomaru smirked slightly. She had planned that, she never meant to touch him at all. That was fine, she could swim away from him for now, but he knew something she didn't think of. She'd have to come back to him for soap…


	7. Chapter 6 iPod Retrieval Mission

_**Chapter 6**_

Kira hid behind the tree in the center of the spring, watching Sesshomaru intently. She didn't trust the man; he was too good at hiding his feelings. She noticed a smile on his face when he turned his back to her, and when he turned back to face her she saw why. He was holding up a bar of soap to show her something crucial she had forgotten when she swam away. There was no way she was going to be able to take a good bath without the soap, and to get the soap she would have to come near him again. She moaned and turned so that her back was against the tree and she was out of his view.

Sesshomaru's sensitive ears picked up the small sound and it sent a shiver down his spine. For a human she really was very attractive, she had a wonderful curve in her hips and full breasts unlike any human he had seen. He shook his head to rid the image of her body from his mind and began to wash himself. He managed to get through his hair and most of his body with his one arm but was having trouble with reaching places on his back when he heard a giggle. He turned to see the woman peeking at him from around the tree with a grin on her face. She reminded him of Rin when she was laughing at some antic of Jaken's.

Being forced to compare himself to Jaken wasn't something he liked at all and the building frustration of this and his failing attempts to wash himself caused him to emit a low rumble from his throat. He expected this to frighten the girl but it only made her sigh. She swam across to him, but never came within reach. He was surprised to see her come back so soon. She stretched out one hand toward him to take the soap. When he didn't give it up she shook her hand like one would with an unruly child. He finally handed it to her and she swam up to his back. She rubbed the bar on her hands, creating a rich lather on them and sat the bar on the stone wall beside her. She then stood perfectly still, waiting for what she didn't know.

"Go ahead." Sesshomaru gave her the permission he knew she awaited.

Kira placed her hands on the demon lord's back and began to rub the soap around. It amazed her how incredibly soft his skin was; it was like touching living silk. She ran her hands over the muscles she had been admiring but ten minutes earlier. His body was so smooth. She realized that she had already washed his entire back and there was no need for her to ouch him any longer, so she pulled her hands away quickly and stepped back away from him. She was shocked when he dove into the water and swam between her legs to come up behind her. By the time she realized what was going on he was breathing down the back of her neck, his arm wrapped tightly around her waist to prevent her escape. She was so startled she forgot to cover herself, and Sesshomaru stared down at her exposed chest. He placed his mouth and nose very close to her neck and began to breathe in her scent. She smelled sweet, like cherry blossoms. He decided to learn all that he could of her with only this one sense. He could smell that she had never been touched by man, something he had already guessed. She was also frightened, she had not been this terrified since he had first met her, and it was something he liked. But beneath that terror was something else, a curiosity.

"You may remain here and bathe on your own, no one will disturb you." Sesshomaru spoke softly into her ear. He could feel her tremble at his voice. "Return to your quarters quickly, there are many men in this household who would love a taste of you."

By the time the words had sunk into her brain he had already left the water, dressed, and left. Kira shivered despite the temperature of the water and rubbed her arms in unease. That was either the most exciting or the most terrifying thing that had ever happened to her.

She remained in the water, trying to get a hold of herself for a few more minutes before she finished washing herself and got out of the water. She found that he had taken both his dirty clothes and hers, and she was left with the white and red silk robe she had been examining before this entire venture in the hot spring had occurred.

She dressed in the robe and felt very vulnerable. It clung to her wet body, and the only thing she could be grateful for was the fact that the red part of it covered everything important. She did as he said and hurried back to her room, resigning to explore the gardens the following day.

Sesshomaru lay in his bed wondering where his new servant had gone. It had been twenty minutes since he had left her stunned in the bathhouse. He had to admit, it was fun messing with her like that, but it had taken an effect on him as well and he decided not to do that again for awhile. Just as he was deciding to go and look for her, he heard a noise in the room next door. She had made it back and was moving around. He heard a loud thud and then what he thought sounded like swearing, though he didn't know the words. Then there was a knock on the adjoining door between the rooms. "Come."

Kira walked through the door and stared at Sesshomaru through her very wet bangs. He was sitting up in his king size bed, leaning against the headboard. There was a book of some sort in his lap. He appeared to be naked beneath the white sheet that covered to his waist. Sesshomaru glanced up at her to see that she was holding the basket of soaps. "Put it over there." He pointed lazily at a dresser and looked back to his book. She did as he said and then looked around the room some more. Sesshomaru looked up and saw that she wasn't just studying the room, but looking for something. She ended her search at him.

He watched as her eyes went from his chest, to his hand. He was holding her iPod. Her eyes slid from the black object up the cord and stopped on the earphones that were resting around his neck.

He smirked, she glowered. "You want this back?" Sesshomaru shook the iPod playfully. "Come and get it." He said it in a mocking tone that said "I dare you" without him needing to pronounce the words. Kira only glared at him, then she surprised him; she marched up to the foot of his bed, and for a moment he thought she just might come for it. But she stopped, extended her arm and performed the same act of indignation against him she had when she ordered for him to give her the bar of soap earlier. Once more he was reminded of Rin. He vaguely wondered if human females ever matured; a fact that was proven to him when he looked at her body. She hadn't changed her clothing when she returned to her room; she was still wearing the wet silk robe he had loaned her, and it showed enough of her figure that she may as well have been nude.

Kira saw the demon eyeing her body and she looked down to see why. She jerked her hand back to cover herself while giving him an embarrassed, but angry look. Sesshomaru raised an eyebrow; she was blaming him for her appearance? Then he heard a low rumble come from her throat, she was growling at him now?

"It is not wise to growl at me woman, for I am a much bigger dog than you." Kira smiled. This sudden change startled him, was this woman bipolar or something. Were he a weakling it would have frightened him.

Kira slowly climbed up onto the foot of his bed. She crawled seductively over the silken sheets and right up on top of the demon lord. He watched her actions in fascination, one moment she was as shy as possible and now she was trying to seduce him. She stopped her journey when she sat up in his lap, straddling his legs. He could feel the warmth of her body through the sheet and vaguely remembered she was wearing nothing under the robe. He started to look down her body but her finger hooked his chin and pulled it up. For a moment she simply stared into his eyes, and though he knew she was up to something he couldn't help but feel a bit of excitement. She leaned in to him, her lips parted slightly. Her half lidded eyes held his until he could taste her breath on his lips. He couldn't resist closing his eyes, but her lips never touched his. She was hovering there for a moment, and then she was gone. He opened his eyes in time to see her run through the connecting door, iPod in hand. His one satisfaction was that he got a very nice view of her ass under the fluttering robe as the door closed.


	8. Chapter 7 Enter The Bad Guy

_**Chapter 7**_

Kira awoke to the sound of knocking on her door. She simply rolled over onto her stomach and covered her head with the pillow. She heard the door slide open and tried to ignore the sound of small but fast footsteps coming closer.

"Miss Kiyoshi!" Rin whispered excitedly into her ear as she tried once more to bury her head under the small pillow. "Miss Kiyoshi, wake up!" Rin nudged the older girl in the ribs with one tiny finger. Kira moaned and curled into a ball. She had been hiking around the country side for the last three days and she didn't want to wake up early on the first day she might be able to take a break from it. "Come on, it's morning and Sesshomaru-sama will be angry if we are late for breakfast."

Kira groaned again, rolled onto her back and sat up. She stretched and yawned wide as she opened one eye to peer at the little girl. Rin smiled wide when Kira finally rested both eyes tiredly on her. "Come on! I want to pick your clothes for you!" Rin took Kira's hand and dragged her up off the futon. She let go when the woman was up and ran to a wardrobe Kira hadn't noticed in the corner earlier.

Kira stood waiting, looking and around the room absently. There was no telling what sort of garment Rin would pull out of that wardrobe; she had a feeling she wasn't going to match at all. Rin returned quickly with a pile of red silk. She held out a kimono, grinning ear to ear. "I've always wanted to see someone wear this one. Sesshomaru-sama said I could wear it when I'm old enough, but I think you are now so you can borrow it till then." The innocence of the girl made Kira smile as she took the kimono from her hands. It was blood red silk, with light pink sakura blossoms embroidered all over. It was beautiful. There was also a white inner kimono already inside. Kira slid out of the silk robe she had forgotten to take off before going to bed and put on the kimono.

"I'll tie your obi! I'm really good at it, one of the servant ladies taught me." Rin took the matching pink and red obi and tied it around the older girl professionally. Kira was grateful because she had never worn a kimono and had no idea how to do it herself. She smiled at Rin when she was finished.

She quickly went through the morning routine of brushing her hair and teeth with the wash basin on the dresser. When she was finished she stood facing Rin for inspection.

"Wow…" Rin circled Kira, "You're really, really pretty." She smiled brightly when she made it back to the front. Kira didn't have time to respond before Rin took her hand and ran toward the door, "Come on!" She managed to scoop up her sandals from next to the doorway as they flew out of the room.

Rin led Kira down a flight of stairs and then into a large dining hall. The table in the room could easily have sat 200 people but only Sesshomaru and Jaken were seated at the time. Rin ran to Sesshomaru and bowed her head, "I'm sorry we were late Sesshomaru-sama, but I had to get Kira dressed. Isn't she pretty?" She didn't wait for the lord to answer, "Miss Kiyoshi, come sit between Lord Sesshomaru and me." Sesshomaru was sitting at the end of the table; Kira's seat would put her to his right, across from Jaken, while Rin would be to her right.

She sat slowly, being careful not to tear the kimono. Looking around at the food she was slightly surprised. Sesshomaru was a Lord; she assumed there would be more food to choose from. She wasn't disappointed though. Rin passed her a bowl of rice and chopsticks, and then slid over a plate loaded with various meats and eggs. She looked down at the food nervously, for some reason she thought Sesshomaru might think of her as a pig if she ate all of that.

As if he had been reading her mind Sesshomaru spoke, "I suggest you eat it all, you will need your strength; Rin tells me she intends to spend the entire day with you." He never looked away from the parchment in his hands and ended his sentence gracefully with a sip of tea. Kira felt a wave of unease; was that a bit of comedy from the ice-lord's mouth? Heh…She didn't take long to finish her food, but as soon as she sat her empty tea-cup on the table Rin had a tight grip on her wrist.

"Come on! I want to show you EVERYTHING!"

Rin gave her he grand tour, showing her just about everything, including the servants' quarters and the rooms that guests stayed in. By noon the two of them had covered just about every square inch of the castle itself. Rin decided it was a good time to stop by the kitchens and pick up some food for lunch, which they took to a nearby flower field that she was fond of.

After eating Kira relaxed and took a deep breath of fresh air as she watched Rin wander about picking the prettiest flowers she could find. She wove these into a wreath which she brought to the older girl. "I made this for you Miss Kiyoshi." Kira smiled and bowed her head for Rin to place it on top.

Kira stood and walked over to a nearby tree. She pulled three thin vines from its low branches and sat beneath it. Rin followed silently and sat in front of the older girl, watching with pure curiosity in her eyes. Kira wove the vines and a few flowers from nearby into a much more intricate version of her own wreath. Rin smiled wide when the woman placed this crown on top of her head.

Kira was slightly taken aback when Rin wrapped her arms around her neck. She vaguely thought this must be what it's like to have a little sister.

They went back into the palace to see what Sesshomaru was up to. Kira was nodding and smiling at the chatty little girl holding her hand as the walked. She only caught some of the words the girl was saying, she was talking so excitedly.

Rin was surprised when her arm was jerked backwards. She stopped suddenly, nearly falling, and looked up at the woman that had been walking with her moments before. She had stopped and was staring ahead of them with a look that Rin didn't understand. "Miss Kiyoshi…What…?" Rin turned to see what the older girl was looking at and squealed as she jumped to Kiyoshi's side.

Kira had stopped because the two of them had very nearly run straight into a man coming down the hall from the other direction. The stranger was very tall, maybe half a foot taller than Sesshomaru. His blazon red hair was held back in a low pony tail and his crimson eyes matched the red of his clothing. There was an emblem of a flame on his chest. He would be just as beautiful as Sesshomaru if his pale face wasn't contorted with something akin to disgust. They had nearly collided, and it would have been just much his fault as theirs, but Kira knew he would have blamed them entirely.

Something about his posture told her that she and Rin were in a very dangerous position right now, and she instantly felt the maternal side of her take hold. She pulled the girl behind her and readied herself to protect the child. She was startled to see the disgust in the demon male's eyes turn to a malicious curiosity.

"Well, well, what have we here?" Kira was caught off guard to hear such an angelic voice come from a being with such evil in his eyes. His voice was like music. "Lord Sesshomaru is dirtying his palace by allowing 'humans' to stay in it?" Something about the way he said "humans" made a chill climb up her spine. It reminded her of the white supremacists she had seen on television when they said the word "nigger", like they were speaking of something that was so beneath them just the word could make their blood filthy. He sneered at Rin, "A child no less." Then he turned his gaze to Kira. She stiffened under the weight of those red eyes. "Hmm, I can understand allowing you though." He reached forward to take her chin in his fingers. As soon as Kira felt the chill of his icy flesh on her chin she snapped, resembling greatly a rabid dog, if only for a moment. He pulled his hand back just as her teeth broke the skin, allowing for a small drop of blood to ooze to the surface. He stared down at his finger, and then licked the blood from the tip seductively. The wound healed instantly and he smiled as he said, "Why you are a charming little viper aren't you?" He reached forward once more and Kira stepped back, barring her teeth at the man in front of her.

Something about him made her feel very animalistic, and violent. She wanted nothing to do with this beast and she knew they had to escape soon or something bad was going to happen. She looked around quickly, trying to decide if she and Rin could run the way they had come and escape, or if she at least could buy some time for Rin to escape and find help.

Suddenly the demon stretched his arm forward and took hold of Kira's throat. She shrieked, as did Rin, and the combination of high pitched noise made the demon growl in pain as he shook his head. She growled and roared as he lifted her, one-handed, into the air. She released Rin's hand and clutched at his arm. She sent one quick look at Rin that said to run and get help. The look was understood and the girl ran as fast as her little feet could carry her. The demon didn't seem to notice.

He pulled her closer to him, buried his face in her hair and breathed in her scent deeply. "I do not think Sesshomaru will mind if I borrow his pet for awhile. What do you think?" She couldn't breathe well enough to answer, so she opted for spitting in his eye. This obviously did nothing but anger him further. He slammed her back into the wall and used his body to pin her there. She could hear the boards in the wall cracking under the pressure; at least she hoped it was the boards and not her neck, which was in a great deal of pain. She scratched desperately at his forearms with her right hand while she dug at his fingers with her left. Tiny beads of blood came to the surface of his skin but the wounds healed as fast as they formed and she accomplished nothing more than painfully bending a couple of her fingernails backward. He smiled as he used his left hand to pin her right to the wall with such force that the wall did crack. The thought of those perfect white fangs entering her flesh terrified her. He started to lean into her and she was very aware of a lump pressing between her legs that showed how excited he was. She groaned and tried again to dig her fingers in between his and her throat. The lump grew larger and his face came closer. She was weeping now and beginning to think no one would save her. She closed her eyes, resigning herself to the hell that was to come.

Needless to say, she was confused when nothing happened. She slowly opened her eyes, expecting him to be waiting for just that, he must want to see the torment in her eyes. He was stopped about three inches from her face and looked just as surprised as she felt. But he wasn't alone. Planted firmly to the left of her assaulter's head was another, this one more familiar but only a little less terrifying. Sesshomaru was standing behind the demon with his claws, glowing an ominous green, threatening the jugular vein of the demon holding Kira. The whites of his eyes had turned red and he was snarling when he spoke in the ear of the head beside him. "Lord Kaiba, if you do not release my personal servant this instant, I will tear out your throat."

The demon now named Kaiba opened his hands and dropped Kira roughly on the floor. She groaned as she rubbed both her neck and her ass at the same time. She could feel a few claw marks on her neck and knew they would burn later.

"Miss Kiyoshi!" Rin came running from behind Sesshomaru and latched onto Kira instantly. "I thought you were a goner! I went and got Lord Sesshomaru, don't worry, he'll take care of everything." Kira couldn't help but smile and wrap her arms around Rin affectionately. She thought to herself about how what the girl said seemed to be very true.

"If I hear of you or anyone else threatening my servants again in anyway, I promise I will not hesitate to dispose of you. Return to your quarters where we will discuss this embarrassment later." Sesshomaru's voice had taken on its usual calm once more, and his face was unreadable. Kaiba grumbled under his breath something about greedy dogs and injustice as he stomped off toward the guest quarters.

Kira sighed with relief and looked at Sesshomaru with a new appreciation. So what if he stuck her in some odd situations, he protected her, that's all the mattered.

"Never do that again." Kira was shocked to see that Sesshomaru was speaking to her. When he saw her confusion he decided to do something he rarely did; he elaborated, "The next time you are in a situation like that, don't fight it. You only make it worse on yourself. If you act like a dog, you will attract a dog." With that he turned and left the two females sitting on the floor of the hallway, one more confused than the other. Kira understood, he was telling her that she acted too much like a demon, and that attracted demons. In his opinion it would have been better for her to just let him do what he wanted instead of fighting him. But she didn't see it that way.

"Miss Kiyoshi, we need to clean you up." Kira looked down at Rin and then at her hands which Rin was pointing at. She was covered in Kaiba's blood, and was disgusted to see little bits of his flesh stuck under her fingernails.

Shouts could be heard from Lord Kaiba's room. He was loud enough that anyone in that wing of the building could probably hear every word of the conversation. Especially if you were eavesdropping outside the door…

"Sesshomaru-sama, I have EVERY right to take her!"

"No Kaiba, you do not. I have given all access to my harem, you can have any woman there you like. But the humans are off limits." Sesshomaru spoke calmly as ever, though he was getting impatient with the demon pacing across from him. He always hated dealing with this particular lord.

"But Sesshomaru, you have not taken her as your mate! She is an untouched fruit; you can smell it in her just as I can! She is ripe and ready, allow me to take her if you won't!"

"Kaiba. You shall have nothing to do with the humans. They belong to me and me alone. The child will be untouched until she decides she is ready; and the woman…" Sesshomaru trailed off here; for once not sure of just what he intended to say.

"The woman is ready! If you will not take her, allow someone who will show her the many uses of that body of hers. This is no way to treat a foreign lord, Sesshomaru, you know that! If you came to my lands in the south I would allow you to take whatever woman you desired. She is nothing but a human, how can she be so important to you? Or are you so much like your father that species doesn't matter…" Kaiba struck a nerve there.

"KAIBA!" Sesshomaru roared at the foreign lord, who cringed in fear. "They will not be touched. As I said once before, if you touch either of them I will kill you without thought. Am I understood?" His voice quickly trailed back off to its usual calm tone.

Kaiba hesitated, but after seeing the red tint in Sesshomaru's eyes creep back, answered quietly, "Yes, Lord Sesshomaru." He bowed slightly as Sesshomaru turned and left the room.

Kira was standing outside the room listening in on what she could. It was easy enough to hear what Kaiba was saying and it was hard to suppress an angry growl, but Sesshomaru was a bit more difficult to understand. What was that crack about Sesshomaru's father and the species not meaning anything? She didn't have time to contemplate this here, she heard Sesshomaru rise from his seat on the floor. She started to run as quietly as she could down the hall. She had taken her shoes off for this purpose and was surprised at just how quiet she was running like a mad woman around the corner.

Sesshomaru had known someone was listening in on the conversation the entire time and was prepared to kill the eavesdropper upon exiting the room. He was surprised though when he was greeted with the fresh scent of Kiyoshi. She had been listening? A slight smirk found its way onto his features as he walked back to his room.

Kira just got the door to her room shut when Sesshomaru came around the corner, and she was already sitting on her cot pretending to read a book she had brought with her when she heard him enter his own room.

Kira awoke the next morning to the bright light of the sun. She kept her eyes closed and stretched languidly her upper body sliding out from under the blanket. A tiny groan escaped her as she bent her back so that her bare stomach was pushed into the air. She yawned and rolled onto her side, facing away from the wall, and slowly opened her eyes. What she saw shocked her so badly she yelped and shot straight up into a sitting position, holding the blanket tightly to her nude body.

Sesshomaru was standing not a foot away from the edge of the bed. She wondered vaguely what brought him into her room, but that worry was soon wiped away when she began to wonder _when_ he came to her room and how long he had been watching her. She blushed as she realized that the blanket wasn't covering her while she stretched and she wondered how much of her he had seen. She didn't worry long, the stoic expression he always wore was in place and she realized it didn't matter to him what she wore or didn't wear.

"I called for you ten minutes ago." Ten minutes? He really let her sleep for ten minutes after calling for her? That didn't seem like him at all. "Get dressed, and make sure it's something you can move in." He turned as he spoke and walked over to the dresser. He leaned back on the edge of it, carelessly resting his buttocks on top.

As Kira rose from the bed, sure to keep the blanket wrapped around her body the entire time, she thought briefly about how it seemed he was getting less and less stiff around her, she had never seen him do anything carelessly before, he was such a tight ass. She wondered why that was.

She pulled a pair of camouflaged jeans from one of the dresser drawers. They were old and tattered around the hems at the feet, and had aping tears at the knees and under the butt-cheeks, but she had never had the heart to through them out. She loved thee pants and they were the most comfortable, pants she had, besides, he said to wear something she could "move" in, and these were the best she had for that purpose. Then she pulled out a navy blue tank top from another drawer and stared at the demon lord, waiting for him to leave or turn around or something. He just stared back. She rolled her eyes, she should have known better than to expect decency of that sort from him. She walked to the other side of the room, picking up her bra from the floor on the way and deliberately turned her back on him.

Sesshomaru would have punished any other servant for turning their back to him that way, but he just couldn't bring himself to damage her that way. He watched patiently as she slipped the strange pants under the blanket she now wore like a towel, then raised an eyebrow as she dropped the blanket and attached that strange fabric device around her chest. His face returned to normal as she slipped the shirt on and turned back to him.

"Come." Kira just had time to slip her feet into her shoes as he left the room.

He led her outside the palace, and out to the second largest of all the outbuildings. She realized, due to the sounds of fighting coming from inside, that this was the dojo. She assumed the bigger building next door was the barracks. They passed through the double doors at the front of the building. The sounds of fighting were magnified as they echoed off of the walls and ceiling of the building. Her ears twitched at the intensity.

The main room seemed to be about four times the size of a normal high-school gymnasium, but otherwise they were very similar; the floor was polished hardwood and there were a few benches placed against the walls. Sections of the floor were covered in large tatami mats, each with a different group of demons sparring or listening to various instructors. As she and Sesshomaru passed, demons would stop what they were doing to stare.

She was astounded to see the differences in them, she had no idea they could be so varied. Occasionally during her short stay in the palace she had seen servants with tails, or strange ears, but that was nothing to this. They passed demons that looked strikingly like grizzly bears that towered over even Sesshomaru. There were men who moved much like birds. She realized the bird description wasn't that far off when one of them flew down and landed thirty yards from them. She gasped as he transformed from a great eagle to a man. She looked back to Sesshomaru and wondered for a moment if maybe he could do something like that… She almost ran into his back when he stopped suddenly. She leaned around him to see what was going on. He had stopped near a small group of students who had quit listening to their instructor and bowed when they saw Sesshomaru amongst them. She stared at their faces. They were young, so young. She realized suddenly that these weren't men, but boys. Most of them couldn't have been fourteen of fifteen years of age.

"Lord Sesshomaru, how great an honor it is for you to visit us today! Isn't it men?"

"Yes, Kiba sensei." All the boys responded in unison.

Kira looked to the demon when he spoke, and she found she couldn't look away. His hair was white, not white with age but white like frost. It reminded her of when it would snow, then rain, and then freeze over. The color the snow filled ice would make on the limbs of trees. His skin was just as pale. His eyes astounded her; they were ice blue around the outer rim of the irises, and faded to white around the pupil. She looked down his body as she took in his clothing. He wore not the red of the other men but blue. His pants were navy blue and fluffy; they gave her an impression of freedom, like a cloud. His shirt was a lighter shade, like a crystal blue glacial lake. It clung to his figure nicely, showing every move of every muscle beneath it. His well-toned arms were bare and even though he was standing casually, they still looked strong. The part that amazed her most about this demon though was his smile. Unlike the cold smiles she received from all the other demons she had met, or the sadistic ones from Kaiba and that jackass that tried to sell her, it was kind and warm. It was a stark contrast to the cold appearance he gave. He genuinely seemed to be a happy person, and was pleased to see them. He was, well, beautiful.

"Ahem, can I help you?" He raised one eyebrow and stared at Kira. She blushed and looked down from embarrassment, but not before seeing a wide grin stretch across his face.

Sesshomaru spoke then, drawing both of their attentions to him. "As you can see Kiba, I have acquired a new servant. Her name is Kiyoshi, teach her to defend herself, she is useless if she gets herself killed." With that he turned and left Kira the only human woman in a room full of demon men.


	9. Chapter 8 Training

_**Author's note: **__To all of You who have reviewed my story thus far, thank you! If it weren't for you I would not keep writing. I really appreciate it and I would hug and kiss you all if I could. I hope you continue to enjoy the story. So this chapter has changed a LOT from the original version of this story that was up in the past. (I also put in a nice little twist at the end ^_^) if you have ANY questions at all about this story and anything in general feel free to ask, I would love to answer you. Also any suggestions would be greatly welcome, I kind of suck at writing. Oh yeah, I got a review saying something about a weird spelling error, please let me know what it was so I can correct it, I usually don't notice them unless my spell check shows them, I don't proofread. If I proofread I would end up changing the whole thing, it's a fact, lol. Anyway, if I take to long to update, feel free to review or email constantly telling me to get my ass to work because you won't make me mad, you'll just make me actually do it. _

_I tried to make Sesshomaru more like himself than I did in the last one and thus far I think I'm doing a pretty good job of it. He isn't in this chapter as much but it makes more sense to me this way._

_**Chapter 8**_

Kira stood motionless before the demon. She wasn't sure if she should scream or run or do both, but Kiba's warm smile made her think that maybe it wasn't so dangerous to be stuck here. Sesshomaru had ordered him to train her; surely he wouldn't let her die, would he?

"So, Kiyoshi is it?"

Kira just nodded, still too frightened to speak.

"Well, let's see, where to start." He turned to look back at his students who were now standing behind him staring at Kira oddly. A couple of them looked hungry, she shivered. "Go, find something better to do than gawk." He turned back to Kira, "As for you, come with me; you seem to be too much of a distraction for my soldiers." He smiled again and Kira wondered at the strange glint in his eye.

He led her to the back of the room and through a doorway. She followed him down a hall, ducking out of the way as other demons came from the other direction. He finally stopped and opened a door, motioning for her to go inside. She peeked in. It was pitch black; she couldn't see a single thing in there.

For a moment she wondered if this Kiba was really as kind and carefree as he looked or if he was planning to finish what Kaiba had started before. But one look at his smile and she just couldn't help but obey. She held her head high, took a deep breath, and walked through the door.

She stood in the darkness for only a second. She cringed and covered her eyes with her arm as Kiba opened three windows on the other side of the room, allowing the bright morning sun to enter. When she could see again, she let her eyes wander over the rest of the room. It was fairly small, only about twelve feet in both directions and had the same tatami mats lining the floor as in the larger room. Other than a small shrine at one end surrounded in incense burners, the room was bare.

"Come, come," Kiba was waving her over to the center of the room. When she got there he stepped back from her, crossing his arms as he did so. She stood straight and looked toward the shrine, knowing that he was evaluating her. He circled her slowly studying every inch of her stiff body. "Relax, there you go." He raised both of her arms and had her flex so he could see what sort of musculature she had. Every now and then he broke the silence with "mm"'s and "ah, yes"'s.

After what seemed like forever to Kira, he finally stopped in front of her and smiled. "Well, I think I can work with this, no problem. First, we talk. Sit, sit." They both sat cross legged on the floor looking at each other. "So first things first, you are human yes?" she nodded, "Very well, and I assume you are about 17 or 18?" She nodded again. "Hrmm, I prefer to get my students when they are very young, best when they are 4 or 5 years old. But I can teach you, it's just more of a challenge. Luckily for me you seem fit for a human. I would venture to guess from your structure that you are a climber?" She thought back to all those times she had climbed trees to escape her step-father's friends. She nodded again. "I thought so. I'm going to go through the same basic training exercises with you that I do with the others, but not quite the same. I don't have to teach you to use various powers since you're human but there are things I do need to teach you that I wouldn't have to teach a demon. We'll start out with the same techniques; meditation, flexibility exercises and basic martial arts. Then we'll move on to higher mental facilities and higher levels of martial arts. Eventually we'll get to weapons training and other random but useful skills."

She nodded curtly, wondering just how difficult these exercises he put her through were going to be. She thought of her encounter with Kaiba and cold determination took control of her body, she would be the best student Kiba ever had, demon or human.

"Meditation first then. Meditation is actually a fairly difficult thing to learn so don't be disappointed when your mind wanders the first few times ok?" Kiba watched as she followed his instructions, "Sit comfortably and close your eyes. Now breathe deeply, with your abdomen not your chest. There you are, count your breathing slowly in your head. Start with six seconds per inhale then six more per exhale. Over time you will take this number up to eight, then ten, and steadily increase increments by two until we get to your limit. Good job, you're doing surprisingly well at this so far. After a week or so of this sort of meditation we will try moving on to more elaborate methods. For now let's keep at this for an hour or so." With that he went silent.

Kira tried to keep her focus on her breathing, and shortly discovered just how difficult this could be. She had once heard that the adult mind was distracted from its focus an average of ever 7 seconds but she had never quite understood until now. A slight breeze came in through the window and she realized she lost focus by noticing it, a moment after that she heard a shout far in the distance and couldn't help being aggravated by the distraction. After 15 minutes or so she managed tog et in the hang of it and could ignore some of the distractions.

"Alright," Kira's eyes shot open to stare at Kiba, had she fallen asleep? "That was an hour. I told you it was difficult the first few times didn't I?" Kiba chuckled. I want you to do this exercise for an hour before you go to sleep every night as well. It won't be long until you can do this easily enough, and it will help you sleep better. After years of this you can even replace sleep with meditation if you need to, it's very handy sometimes." He stood and stretched out his arms and legs. Kira got up stiffly and stretched her own muscles, she felt as though she had been sleeping in that position or hours, it was quite uncomfortable.

"Ok, now we do some flexibility exercises. I know you are stiff from sitting there and you don't want to do this but you are going to anyway." He gave her a look that said he was daring her to protest. She just puffed out her chest and mock saluted him in sarcasm. He raised and eyebrow and it occurred only then to her that he might not know what the salute was. But he got the idea. "We are going to be using a technique called yoga. It's much easier than demon methods, we use it on the children, and so I figure it's best to start that way with you. Just do what I do." Kira smiled, she knew what yoga was, she had never personally tried it but at least she knew what it was and that it was something that humans were capable of.

He put his feet together slowly raised his arms from the side and put his hands together above his head. "Make sure you breathe in and out the way I do and make sure it's the same as meditation, with your abdomen, not your chest." She nodded and followed his motions well enough. He proceeded to lean to one side and held his position. Kira found that even this simple position actually put a lot of strain on muscles she didn't realize were there. She was just starting to wonder how long she'd have to hold the position when he straightened up, then leaned to the other side. She followed suit and was soon pleased when the exercise was over. He congratulated her on success with that position and then moved right into another pose more difficult than the last. He went through five more poses before ending with her holding one foot in the air with her hand behind her, thigh level to the ground and toe pointing up and her other hand stretched out in front of her, arm level to the ground. He then proceeded to show her the proper warm up exercises when preparing for martial arts and then ended the lesson with directions and demonstrations, and a few failed and completed attempts on her part, of how to perform a proper kick and punch of various methods. By the end of it all she was sweating and felt she really REALLY needed a bath. Kiba on the other hand was not fazed by the entire thing and went to continue training with the other students after telling her to come back every morning at the same time and waving goodbye.

She slowly picked her way back across the grounds and to her room. She grabbed an apple from the kitchen on the way for a late lunch. While gathering a change of clothes and her bathing supplies a knock came at the door. When she answered she found Rin standing outside with a grin. "What are you doing Miss Kiyoshi? Sesshomaru-sama said you were training with Kiba chan and I wasn't allowed to interrupt. Oh, are you going to bathe? That's a good thing 'cause you kinda stink." The girl held her nose closed dramatically and waved the air clear in front of her. Kira rolled her eyes and continued with what she was doing. Rin followed her around the room and continued to follow on her heels as she crossed the grounds to the bath house, where she nodded to the guards and went in. It was only then that she noticed Rin carrying a basket. Rin noticed her staring at it and smiled up at the older woman.

"I'm going to bathe with you Kiyoshi san!" Kira smiled at the utter cuteness of the little girl as she danced around her singing the sentence over and over again. Rin insisted on washing the older girl's back for her and playing a few swimming games during the bath, such as dropping a small metal ball in the water and taking turns diving for it. Because of these distractions the bath ended up taking much longer than Kira had planned. She got out and found that her fingers and toes were pruney.

They went to the garden and walked hand in hand as Kira studied the various flowers and vines and Rin hummed as she skipped. Every now and then Rin would stop and name one of the plants, claiming she had recently learned it in one of her morning lessons. She would chatter about the things she liked learning about and the things she didn't and how much the old vulture demon who taught her made her shiver. "She's a grumpy old bat she is, but Sesshomaru sama says I have to study with her and Jaken sama says so too. Jaken sama is grumpy too but he's fun to play with and he can be nice when he wants to be." Kira just smiled warmly and listened quietly to the little girl.

"Rin san, Kiyoshi sama, Sesshomaru requests that you come to dinner shortly." A servant had shown up and bowed her head as she related the message.

"Ok, we'll be there!" Rin answered because Kira was still fascinated by the choice of honorific used by the servant. _Sama_? When had she started being known as _sama_? "Come on Kiyoshi san! Let's go before we're late." Rin was pulling Kira's hand, trying to drag her toward the castle.

The next few weeks played out about the same way everyday. Kira woke just at sun rise and ate breakfast in silence with Sesshomaru. She would then meet with Kiba in the dojo and proceed with her training. Every now and then Sesshomaru found the time to come and oversee her training. He never revealed what he thought of her growing abilities. He only pointed out things she needed to work on and asked Kiba questions. After training she would spend some time with Rin, listening as she talked about her studies or picking wildflowers in the fields outside of the compound. They would be sent for at suppertime and she would accompany Sesshomaru afterwards to the bathhouse and then she would assist with the least delicate of the mass amounts of paperwork the demon lord apparently had to deal with. She would meditate and do some quick exercises before bed and slept like a log every night.

"She's doing quite well actually," Kiba said to Sesshomaru on one of the occasions that he visited the dojo. "I'm actually planning to take her to the equipment room and test her out with a few different things in the next couple of days." She had already begun training with bows and found that she had a bit of a knack for them. He also had begun to have her use a staff while doing some of the martial arts. She wondered what other weapons he would be training her with.

"Very well," Sesshomaru turned his attention to Kira. "Kiyoshi, I will be needing you directly after training today in my office." And with that, he was gone.

Kira didn't have time to wonder why he would need her before Kiba called to her. "Come on Kiyoshi, time to go see what else you have an affinity for. You know you actually learn pretty fast," he kept talking and smiling as he led her down the familiar hallway. "Maybe it's because I'm used to teaching demons or something, perhaps humans learn faster, I dunno. Either way, you're not half bad. Before long I doubt you won't be able to take on half, or more, of the demons in this dojo. I wonder what sort of weapon will suit you though, I know that bows suit you quite well actually." Kira was looking into the various rooms that they passed as they walked. Sometimes she would find demons praying to various shrines, meditating, or sparring in private lessons. Some were humanoid, while others were in their true forms, she wondered vaguely what form Kiba or Sesshomaru took when they transformed. "Here we are." Kiba has stopped and opened a door to the left. She followed him through and realized that she was in the armory. She had never been here but it was fairly obvious due to the large shelves and racks full of weapons of various degrees of deadly.

"Ok," Kiba walked over to a shelf, not paying much attention to Kira as she walked to another and eyed its contents. She glanced at him as he dug through piles of old rusted weapons that obviously weren't in use anymore. "No these won't do, I thought I told Shimi to have these melted down…" He mumbled to himself as he went on digging in another pile. Kira turned back to the shelf in front of her and examined the hunks of wood and metal. From what she could tell, most of these were flails and clubs of some sort. She walked slowly around the room examining the other shelves. She passed by swords of varying sizes and shapes and hammers and chains. Her eyes widened as she looked at a hammer easily three times her size. She couldn't imagine what sort of beast was able to handle _that _monstrosity.

"Ok, come here." Kiba called her to the center of the room and handed her a sword. The blade was wide and flimsy but looked very sharp, the handle didn't fit right in her hand. She expected him to tell her to do something with it but it was out of her hand almost as soon as it was in. "No I think not." He handed her a different sword, this one more comfortable and familiar. It was a gladius, she recognized it from tv shows about gladiators. "Try swinging that about a little." Kira did as told and soon decided she didn't like the short blade of the weapon very much. "The weight of it seems all wrong for your body, hold on. Let me to try some other things." Kiba kept handing different swords to her and having her move with them. He didn't seem to find anything he liked a lot though because he kept taking them away and putting new ones in her hand. A few he let her swing around for a few minutes before shaking his head and mumbling as he handed her the next. He moved on to trying a couple different clubs and mallets but to Kira's great pleasure he didn't seem to like those with her NEARLY as much as the swords. She waited patiently as he replaced the weapons on the shelves and gathered new ones from elsewhere.

"I've never had so much trouble placing the perfect weapon into someone's hands before," he said as he plopped down in a cross legged position on the floor. They had exhausted every weapon he had brought to her and still hadn't found one that pleased them both. "This will take some thought. Tomorrow we will train with the katana and a couple other things and I will try to think of what it is that I've not tried yet. Right now you had best be getting along, Sesshomaru sama isn't going to be pleased if you are late." He waved goodbye to her and sat pondering with his fingers pressed to the pale skin of his forehead. She giggled at the childish pose he had taken on and bowed as she left.

When she got to Sesshomaru's office she found him swamped in paperwork. He waved her in and she sat behind the low table that had been brought in weeks prior, and placed perpendicular and to the left of the demon lord's own desk. He pointed at a pile of papers, "Those need to be sorted." Kira set to work immediately. The one advantage she saw in helping with so much paperwork was that her written Japanese was improving dramatically. She was now able to quickly scan over the papers and organize them into piles of what they were. She wondered at the increase in paperwork lately. Sesshomaru seemed to be reading a lot of letters lately and more and more other demon lords were appearing. They all stayed in the same wing as that bastard Kaiba and with her busy schedule she hadn't really noticed the influx until recently when a few of them started to take dinner with them.

Sesshomaru called for supper to be brought to them when they were still only half through when the meal was due. He didn't need the meal but Kiyoshi's stomach growled and he had to remember that humans had needs that demons did not. He was reading over letters from foreign lords informing him of when they were set to arrive and what special preparations were necessary for their arrival. This meeting of demon lords had only taken place once before in his lifetime and he was only a pup then. A thousand years ago the various demons of the world thought it was a good idea to have a meeting every two hundred years and for it to serve as a way for them to keep peace between them. They would discuss all of their needs and politics, and hopefully come to certain agreements to keep war from happening. This time it was Sesshomaru's turn to host and all it was doing for him was giving him a headache and making him increasingly irritable. It probably wouldn't have been so horrible if it weren't for certain lords needing special arrangements, some needed cooled or heated rooms depending on their usual climates and nature, and still some others required water or special rooms. A few of the surrounding lords had come early with promises of assisting the demon lord. The four lords in Japan were all expected to help with funding this gathering and so they were all present, Sesshomaru being the most powerful of the local lords was responsible for housing the occasion. If he had to deal with Lord Kaiba much longer he was going to snap. As a law, no demon could attack anyone during these meetings or all the others would immediately kill the offending demon, so he wasn't too worried about that but fights were always probable when you got this many demons together. He scanned the next letter and that was it, his temper snapped.

Kira jumped and looked up to see papers flying from Sesshomaru's desk. He was growling and his eyes were turning that blood red they had when he had dealt with Kaiba. _What on earth caused this? _She jumped up and before she knew it she was wrapping her arms around Sesshomaru like he was a frightened child. She cooed to him and ran her hand through his hair trying to calm him down. Some part of her recognized that this was possibly the stupidest thing she had ever done and that she would die for it, but she knew that if she ran he would have killed her without thinking. _If you run from a dog it will chase you._ She caught herself in that thought, _why am I equalizing him with a dog? _She shrugged off the thought and continued to stroke Sesshomaru's hair. The shaking was subduing and he was breathing easier. When she finally felt it was safe she pulled away and put her face directly in front of his, holding the sides of his face between her hands. She stared him directly in the eye for a moment, registering in the back of her mind the look of complete shock that was not hidden in his features. When she felt he was calm enough she released him and walked around his desk to retrieve the papers he had flung about the room. She glanced down at the one that seemed to have offended him so badly. One line caught her eye above all the rest.

"_What of your younger brother, Lord Sesshomaru? He will be present will he not?_"

_**Author's note: **__So how did you like it? I plan to put Sesshomaru's reaction in the next chapter, I didn't this time because it just seemed so natural to leave it off at the line from the letter when I got to it. I may even take suggestions to how he should react. (hint hint)Anyway, love you guys, please review whether you have before or not, I love multiple reviews._


	10. Chapter 9 Demons Galor

_**Author's note: **__I'm soooooooo sorry this took so long guys, I know it's been ages and a lot of you probably aren't wanting to even read the story anymore, but I'm trying. I've been really busy lately so it took forever to get to working on this, but I did it!!! And you'll be happy to here that I already have up to most of chapter 12 written, so updates will come sooner, at least for a little bit. I will try to upload this chapter and probably the next one together and if you are lucky I'll put 11 up too, but I dunno yet, might save it to put up with 12 when it's finished. I've been writing nonstop for like 3 days, and hopefully that will continue. _

_ALSO, I changed the story a lot from here on out from the way it was originally, and trust me, that's a good thing. The original version kind of wasn't going anywhere, but this one seems to be doing a HELL of a lot better at that. I also took out Corinne, I still don't know if I will put her back in or not yet. I'm doing a much better job of having the Sess/Kira relationship evolve more slowly this time too. I think it will make for a better story. I'm already plotting later scenes and things, which is a good sign for the story._

_In this chapter I remembered something that had been sort of neglected throughout the earlier chapters of the story, and even though it's too late to fix the other chapters on this point, I think I managed to bring it back pretty well._

_Ok, so I'm done rambling, enjoy!_

**Chapter 9**

Kira sat on her bed with a large leather-bound book in her lap. It was her father's Book of Shadows. This book is what had helped her escape her old "home" to find this place. So far she was very pleased with the results of that little experiment.

Sometime in the last week she had decided it was time to read through the book again and see if there was anything else amazing she could with it. Maybe something to help Sesshomaru out with all that paperwork, yeah, that would be awesome. The book was sort of like a magical diary. It was easily 6 inches thick, and that was astounding since all of the paper was Bible paper thin. The entire thing was hand written, and her father had explained to her when she was little that it had been written in by all the people in their family for centuries. When she was little she used to marvel over the handwriting itself. The beginning of the book was written in such a curvy script and with strange words. She realized now that it was written in the dialect of the woman who wrote it, and since it was dated at 1640 she knew it would be hard to read. She had never bothered to read those ancient parts before. Up until the time that she searched it for a spell to get away she had never read anything that wasn't written in her father's clean manuscript. She hadn't kept it for its spells or secrets; she kept it because it was her father's and because it was something to remember him by. But now she had decided that it was time to learn something about her past.

Kiba was right, she did learn fast. A lot of the things she was able to learn to do with his training that she just knew nobody else could have done. She had become incredibly flexible; she dared say she could become an acrobat with Cirque Du Soleil now. She was fast, and she had a knack for martial arts. Maybe there would be something in her family's history that explained. Maybe it was because of the whole "witches" thing her dad had mentioned when he gave her the book.

She read through the first few entries before she decided it was time to go to dinner. All she had learned so far was that her so many greats-grandmother was fourteen when she had started to write the book. She had listed a few small things about properties of herbs, and that she had a crush on a local boy. Not quite the sort of thing she was hoping to find out but interesting nonetheless.

She stored the book back in the dresser, cleaned up in the wash basin and headed for the dining hall. She found Rin sitting in her usual seat and took her place between her and Sesshomaru. She looked around and was surprised to see just how many people were there. The number of foreign lords appearing had been getting larger, but she didn't know there were this many. There were at least 25 people sitting around this table, and she was upset to learn that Kaiba of all people was there as well. Apparently he had decided it was time to quit taking dinner in his rooms and to come be social.

"Lord Sesshomaru, your home is quite beautiful." Kira was surprised to hear the English language. It had been the first time since she arrived that someone had spoken her language. She was delighted. It was a gentleman sitting across the table and about 5 seats down that had spoken. "I'm positively delighted to be here!" She had to smile at his proper English accent, definitely a British demon. She was surprised by how human he looked, if she didn't know any better, she might have thought he was human. He had that distinctive British facial hair, the one with the fluffy sideburns that blend straight into a moustache without a single hair on the chin. He wore a waistcoat and had a monocle, though why a demon would wear a monocle she couldn't figure out.

"Thank you Lord Bartholomew. You are very welcome here. I trust your room has been to your liking?" Kira was shocked to hear Sesshomaru speak in plain English. She stared at him open-eyed with jaw dropped.

"Yes, yes. Quite right, it is wonderful, thank you!" Lord Bartholomew seemed pleased.

"It must differen fom home in Engrand, with arr dees youkai runnigu flee?" Kaiba spoke with difficulty. He obviously wasn't as educated as Sesshomaru, and his English was poor. Kira couldn't help but laugh out loud, which got her a lot of stares from all around the table. Even Sesshomaru raised an eyebrow at her in surprise. Kaiba blushed deep red and directed an evil stare at her. She blushed and lowered her head, eating her rice slowly and silently.

Sesshomaru smirked slightly and turned his attention back to Kaiba. "It's alright Kaiba, not everyone can speak more than their own language." He said this in English and loudly enough for the entire table to hear. They all laughed and joked.

Kaiba continued to glare at Kira with a rage that almost seemed that it could kill. Sesshomaru didn't join in the laughter; he just stared at Kiyoshi, amazed that could tell that Kaiba had screwed up at all.

"Maybe you should keep her on a leash Sesshomaru _sama_," Kaiba spit out the honorific like it was venom. "It's rude to let your pets eat at the table." He spoke in Japanese.

Kira turned blood red from embarrassment but managed to keep it all reigned in.

"She's an ugly little dog isn't she? Just like the human your father took to bed isn't she? I guess like father like son, apparently the Inu Taisho line has an affinity for human women. So is Inuyasha going to be here as well Sesshomaru? He is your brother after all, even if his blood is polluted, he still sprang from your father's loin."

"Yes Sesshomaru sama, is your brother going to be here? I've heard many stories about him, I would love to meet him." This time it was an African demon that greatly resembled a lion who spoke. He had black skin and a golden mane that perfectly match the gold of his eyes. He didn't speak in rudeness, and he didn't seem to understand that rude is exactly what Kaiba was going for with this.

Sesshomaru sat in silence with his eyes closed and his head bowed. But Kira knew what was happening. He was furious, and he was trying to hold it in. She could just see the snarl on his face behind all the hair. She touched his knee gently under the table where no one else could see the motion and watched as he calmed significantly. "Yes, he will come. I am sending word for him tomorrow…"

"The plan seems to be working master," a quiet and scratchy voice came from a dark corner of the room. "He's sent for him, everything is going perfectly."

"I don't care about that."

"But master! We're so close! The Western kingdom will be yours…"

"I want her…"

"What was that master? I couldn't hear…"

"I said, go ahead with the plans. Continue as ordered. I have work to do…"

"Yes master." And with that, the small demon hiding in the corner disappeared; leaving the tall demon with red hair staring out the window all alone…

_**Author's Note: **__So how was it everyone? Please review and let me know! Even if you've reviewed before, I'd love to hear ANYTHING you have to say about it! Ja ne!_


	11. Chapter 10 Healing Magick

**Chapter 10**

"Inuyasha! What are you doing?!"

"Shut up Kagome! I'm tired of this!"

"Inuyasha, SIT!"

_**BLAMMMM!!!**_

A small fox demon jumped into Kagome's arms as she glared down at the crater made when Inuyasha was subdued. "Inuyasha, you know better than to pick on Shippou." She marched off angrily, Shippou hanging over her shoulder to stick his tongue out at the half demon twitching in the hole.

"Maybe you should take it easy on him Kagome. He can't help his nature." A young monk dressed in black and violet robes suggested as the teenaged girl sat down by the fire. She adjusted her school uniform to be sure that nothing was visible the way she was sitting and sighed.

"I can't just let him pick on Shippou all the time Miroku. Really, it's getting ridiculous!"

"She has a point Miroku; I wouldn't let him get away with it either." A woman a little older than Kagome added to the conversation. She handed some of the instant ramen she was making to Miroku and left him with a lump forming on his head when he copped a feel of her butt.

"Sango, what was that for?" Miroku rubbed his head and stared after her.

"Heh, figured you would all gang up on me." They looked up to see a figure sitting in the tree above then. He had a red kimono on and was whipping some of the dirt out of his long silver-blue hair. Inuyasha. "I didn't do anything wrong, he's the one that was trying to pull a prank on me. Jees."

**SMACK!**

"Oh, it's you Miyoga." Kagome pulled her hand away from her face as the flea fell away.

"What are you doing here Miyoga?" Inuyasha questioned as he jumped from the tree to squat beside Kagome and frown at the flea in her hand.

"Lord Inuyasha! I'm so happy to see you! Have I got news for you, heh heh." He chuckled with his little flea voice and jumped to Inuyasha's cheek.

**SMACK!**

"What kind of news Miyoga?" Inuyasha sounded even more irritated than usual as he caught the falling flea.

"Umm, yes, that. Ahem." He straightened his jacket and stood up tall. "Your presence has been requested Lord Inuyasha, at the International Demon Lord Communication Gathering. IDLCG for short."

"And what in the hell is that Miyoga?" Inuyasha's eyebrow twitched up and down as he tried to understand.

"Why it's only the greatest gathering of demons in the world! It occurs every two hundred years, and this year it's happening here in Japan." He said all this with great pride in his voice.

"I ain't goin' to no demon political party." He flicked Miyoga off his hand and jumped back into his tree.

"But lord Inuyasha!" Miyoga was standing in Kagome's palm again, staring up at Inuyasha in exasperation. "You father is one of the very demons who created this gathering! You must go. It's not like you can just skip out on it. You were cordially invited by the host himself!"

"I don't think it's a good idea either." Sango had an angry look in her eyes. "As a demon hunter, I wouldn't feel safe at all in a place packed with all the most powerful demons in the world. And I don't suggest you go either." She looked as serious as a young woman could possibly look.

"Wait, this could be a good idea!" Miroku looked excited as he jumped to his feet.

"What are you talking about Miroku?" Kagome looked confused.

"Think about it! It's a gathering of all the most powerful demons in the world right Miyoga?"

"Of course. Only the most powerful, and lord Inuyasha _and party_ are invited."

"Alright, so who's the most powerful demon we know of? Who's the demon that has the rest of the jewel shards, the one we've been hunting down for ages? Who would have to come out of hiding to be there for this meeting. There is no way he could avoid going!"

"Miroku, you're insane, but you're right!" Kagome jumped up and down in joy. "Inuyasha, we have to go! Naraku will be there!"

Inuyasha jumped down from the tree. "You're right Miroku, he will be there. Miyoga, Miroku and I will go. Kagome, you go back home, and Sango, you and Shippou go back to the village and sta-"

"SIT"

**BLAMMM!!!**

"Inuyasha, if you think you are going to this meeting with out me and Sango, you're crazy! Now, Miyoga, where is this meeting being held, who's the host?"

"That's where it's tricky…It's being held in the western lands, at the palace of Inuyasha's Great father. And Sesshomaru is the host…"

Kira sat in her room, reading her book of shadows, or at least, _trying_ to read it. She couldn't focus with Sesshomaru pacing back and forth in his room and every now and then roaring something in frustration. After 10 minutes of this she dug out her iPod and turned it on, blaring some Primus to knock out the frustrated sounds of next door.

She found a few spells and things that she decided she wanted to try sometime. She found a few healing spells that she decided she wanted to remember just in case. If there was a reason that Sesshomaru was sending her to training sessions to become a decent warrior she figured it would be a good idea to know how to do some healing stuff. She wasn't a fast healer like the demons around here after all.

She yawned wide and stretched out in the feline way that she always stretched. When she reopened her eyes she found Sesshomaru's face not inched from hers, and he didn't look happy. She screamed and jumped back into the wall behind her. When she ripped off her headphones he backed away.

"We are going to the bath-house, I need to relax." With that he dumped his usual basket of toiletries in her lap and left the room. She rushed to grab her own bath-house supplies and met him in the hallway.

They walked quickly and silently through the palace and out to the bath-house. He ordered privacy from the guards who nodded without looking at him. Once inside he stripped down quickly and dove into the water. Kira couldn't ever remember seeing him so upset by anything. Who was this brother of his that he caused him so much pain to hear of? And why was it so awful that this brother had a human mother? Were interspecies marriages that taboo with demons? She was so lost in thought that she didn't remember to be embarrassed when she took off her clothes ad got into the water with him.

He was leaning against one of the giant boulders at the base of the tree in the center of the water. She knew there was a boulder beneath the water here that made a perfect place to sit. He had his head laid back on the rock with his left hand gently massaging his forehead. She felt so sorry for him right now that she didn't worry about the fact that they were both naked; besides, she was getting used to this. They had been bathing together for how long now? Slowly and cautiously, so as not to take him by surprise, she took hold of his arm and pulled him away from the rock and a little bit. He removed his hand from his head and let her do this, watching her intently with curiosity and confusion. She stared into his deep amber eyes, trying to let him know with her eyes alone that she wanted to help him. It must have worked because he didn't move as she slipped in behind him and pulled him back up against her.

She sat on a higher stone behind him, only semi conscious of the fact that this meant her breasts were slightly above the waterline. But that didn't matter, he was hurting and she wanted to help him, she felt that she needed to.

He sat on the lower stone, between her knees and leaned back as she instructed with her hands. He found that she had lain his head on her breasts and he couldn't help but notice just how well developed she was. She really was an amazing human…

She gently brushed his wet hair away from his face and used her fingers to massage his forehead and temples. He relaxed a little bit and let his head rest fully back. He watched her silently as she continued to rub away the headache that had formed hours ago and wouldn't abate until now. He came to realize that he had closed his eyes. He hadn't felt more relaxed since he was a child. She began to hum quietly, some nameless tune that just came to her as she worked. He felt it coming from her stomach and chest as much as he heard the music and it calmed him even further. What was this? He didn't even reach this state of peace when meditating, how could a human girl bring this to him? She continued her massage from his temples to the rest of his head, gently twining her fingers into his hair and tugging in just the right way to relive the cramping muscles around his skull. She must have brought the soaps with her because he noticed that she was washing his hair now, and she used some of the soap to wash his shoulders and chest as well. It was an invigorating feeling; he was actually getting goose bumps! She moved so slowly and purposefully, and every tough felt like heaven.

Kira noticed as she went just how relaxed he was becoming; pretty soon she thought he might fall asleep. _Good_, she thought, _he could use some rest. Poor guy is completely stressed out_. Just then something occurred to her. How much easier would it be for him if he had both arms? How much of the stress would that relive for him? She wasn't sure exactly how he had lost his arm, but she knew it must have been in some sort of battle. She thought back to the book of shadows and remembered a couple of the spells she had learned today. There was one for healing old wounds, which she suspected was more of a heart thing than a physical thing, and one for making things whole. And there were some that were to help grow back things that were missing, like scarred skin or maybe missing bits of ear. She didn't think any of those would be strong enough to grow back an entire arm, but who knew, maybe since he was a demon it would work, or maybe she could combine them in a way that would work. She went over in her head the words and symbols needed to make the spells work, and when she came up with a mixture in her head that she thought would work she decided it was time to try it. She slowly washed washed his left arm and left side of his chest, and then moved to the other side, trying not to alarm him. She turned the song she was humming into a chant of the words she would need and started to trace some of the runes needed onto his skin with her finger. She drew them on his shoulder all the way around and then she moved her hand to the place that his arm was once attached.

A pink light started to glow in her hand. She wanted to gasp but somehow she wasn't surprised, she knew what would happen, and she didn't know how. She also knew that the glow was bright enough that it would soon shine through Sesshomaru's eyelids, he would freak. It started to warm dramatically until it was such a strong heat that she thought it would burn her, but it didn't it just kept getting hotter and she kept chanting.

"What are you doing!" Sesshomaru jumped out of her arms and away from her. He wasn't doing a good job of hiding his shock. Kira jumped in fear and cowered against the rock. _He's going to kill me now. He thinks I was trying to kill him so he's going to kill me…_

Sesshomaru looked at her like she was a totally different creature than what she was, and she was surprised by how much that hurt her. He suddenly grabbed the spot she was attempting to heal in pain and ran from the room.

She sat in the water stunned, what had she done?

_**Author's Note:**__ So how was it everyone? I will try to upload the next couple of chapters soon. Review and let me know what you think. _


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